Anemia for the Primary Care Physician

Darryl J Powell; Maureen Okam Achebe

doi:10.1016/j.pop.2016.07.006

Anemia for the Primary Care Physician

Prim Care. 2016 Dec;43(4):527-542. doi: 10.1016/j.pop.2016.07.006.

Authors

Darryl J Powell¹, Maureen Okam Achebe²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
² Division of Hematology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Midcampus 3, Boston, MA 01701, USA. Electronic address: mokam@bwh.harvard.edu.

PMID: 27866575
DOI: 10.1016/j.pop.2016.07.006

Abstract

Anemia denotes a reduced red blood cell (RBC) mass from any cause. The causes of anemia are numerous and due to decreased (or abnormal) erythropoesis, shortened RBC life span, or blood loss. The most common etiology of anemia is iron deficiency. A judicious work up of anemia includes evaluating the reticulocyte count and peripheral smear. The severity of illness of a patient with anemia is determined by the degree of anemia and the seriousness of the underlying disorder. Management of patients with hereditary and hemolytic anemias should involve a hematologist.

Keywords: Anemia; Anemia of chronic disease; Anemia of inflammation; Hemolytic anemia; Iron deficiency.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Anemia / diagnosis*
Anemia / therapy*
Disease Management
Humans
Primary Health Care*
Severity of Illness Index