Can these symptoms really be down to low Ferritin?

Allergies, blood and immune system
1

Hi everyone, 

I've been back and forth to the doctors over the last month with a cocktail of symptoms. She initially thought was that it was anaemia but my haemoglobin came back normal. I had full bloods, stool sample, chest x ray and ecg's come back clear, so she ruled it down to flu and said she would investigate further in a month or so. 

I've since received an email telling me that the repeat bloods requested show ferritin levels of 11 which she described as 'very low' (it appears she didn't request ferritin levels the first time round). I've got a appointment with her later in the week to discuss this in person, but is it possible this is the cause of my ongoing symptoms?

For instance....

Extreme tiredness 

Fast heart rate on little exertion 

'Burning' legs 

Headaches 

Feeling weak

Breathlessness/chest feeling 'heavy'

I understand these can be symptoms caused by low haemoglobin, but can low ferritin cause similar things? 

Any advice on your own experiences and if you think this could all be iron-deficiency related would be very much appreciated!!! For reference, I'm a 20 year old female currently at university, average weight.

Many thanks  

2

Hi yes I had all them symptoms and more... When my ferritin was 16 (although I think it went lower before I was tested) i felt really ill and at 28 I still felt ill.

3

ask her to check you for celiac disease as well, it causes ferriton aniema and manu other deficincies. make sure you are eating things like bread, noodles, cake, things gluten, when tested. did she check you ANA? there is a reason you are anemic.  don't just take iron without finding out the WHY part, it is not simply from having periods.

4

What is ANA please?

5

Emily,

I had every one of those symptoms.  My hemoglobin was low (8.1), but not as low as others who have posted.  However, my ferritin was *extremely* low--it was only 2.  I was so miserable.  In addition to the symptoms you mentioned above, I also had a lot of dizziness and I got disoriented pretty easily.

I did have low iron, too, but my doctors seemed primarily concerned about my ferritin level.  I had two IV iron infusions, which helped a lot. I also got an IUD to try to control my periods.  I definitely feel much better than I did two months ago.  I'm not quite 100% yet, but I don't have the constand headaches or breathlessness/chest pain.  (I also had ecg, chest x-ray, and a CT scan to make sure they were no cardiac or pulmonary issues--all clear.)

Good luck, and I hope your doctors can help you feel better soon!

6

ANA=Antinuclear antibodies? it would be easier to read on line. It is a starting point basically. If it is positive it could mean you have somehting like lupus, RA or celiacs or some other autoimmune disease.  It is not the only test they run but if it is posive and you have symptoms, they hopefully will look further.  

7

This is a tough one,

because,

yes, even if hb is normal, red blood count is normal, iron is normal,

if ferritin is low, one can have symptoms, still have symptoms of anaemia

(which is really strange since how should it effect the oxygen level that is blamed for the symptoms,

but often encountered also in children. I read a study.

They can't concentrate, feel tired and only ferritin found low, a good supplement with iron, boost ferritin and voila they are fine, how strange, but it is experienced, not really explainable, but experienced. Hence if all parameters for red blood plus iron transferrin are normal, but ferritin was low, it is a really good idea to address this, it is still called 'iron deficiency'.)

We had even less than 11 ng/mL=mcg/L ferritin,

but boosting up ferritin to 30 (not sure what it is now as it is not retested) and stopping menstruation has done nothing to general symptoms.

So you get both answers.

Give it a try to boost ferritin up please, remeasure level,

only then you can be sure if it was down to it or not.

General symptoms are so hard to pin down and take a lot of trial and errors.

Best wishes it was 'only' ferritin level and that you can tackle it easily.

Would actually be the easiest way to help you with symptoms, let's hope it was just the ferritin level as it actually is for many (not all though).

8

Well if your ferritin is 11 then yes you are aneamic and need to address the low iron.

9

Thank you all for the replies!

Just thought I would update you all and also pick your brain over another couple of questions.

I saw the doctor this morning, I must have misunderstood the email I received as my haemaglobin was a little low at 10 (not awful but below normal apparantly) and ferritin was 'very' low at 10 also.

The doctor said she was happy to attribute the tiredeness and fatigue to this as she said even this level of anemia can make you feel 'pretty rubbish'.

One thing that has been concerning me is my elevated heart rate. It seems to me fairly drastic, with a resting bpm of about 90, walking up stairs pushes it up to 140-50 and walking up a slight hill to the surgery today put it up to a scary 170.

However, because my blood pressure and thyroid is fine, and i had 2 ecgs about 3 weeks ago that were fine, shes happy to just say its the anemia, and that it should ease as my iron tablets take effect.

Has anybody else experienced heartrates increasing quite this much? I wish I could just trust that shes happy its a symptom of the iron deficiency but i can't help but worry its something more.

Any advice to calm my mind would be very much appreciated!!!

10

I've read that elevated heart rate is a very common symptom of anemia.

When I was first diagnosed, my resting HR was measured at 80 bpm, and my normal HR is about 52 bpm. I only had that one instance of elevated resting HR, though. It's never happened again in the three months since my diagnosis.

I'm guessing others will share experiences that put your mind more at ease. I'm sure that's a scary feeling!

11

I'd have to agree with the other dee. my number was 4, i felt worse then the worst, iron was low do to celiacs. i go back in in a month to have it retested. Take a good qualtiy iron or your numbers won't go up. I took it three times a day for the first month, two times a day for the next month, now I am on one a day for the next month. Do you know why your numbers are low? There has to be an underlying condition causing it. Mine was Celiac disease.

yo will feel better ina couple months, keep taking the iron! 

12

If you do exercise with anaemia of course your heartrate goes up more than usual. You do have an iron deficiency for sure.

(If you exercise with hyperthyroidism, the heart reate goes up immensly, too, no stairs managable anymore)

I donated once blood 3 times within 3 weeks (for myself, liver op) and couldn't tolerate any normal exercise due to induced anaemia. Got dizzy, high heart rate, faint.

It's a compensation.

A slight hill is much. We need to adjust and it takes time, weeks.

Having said though, I have no anaemia now, normal thyroid and no pheochromocytoma and get episodic 200+ pulse in rest (like in sleep or watching TV), which feels awful on the roof of my head as if someone was knocking fast inside. And here I am. Only sinus rhythm going mad.

Better a beating heart, that a silent heart is my saying.  

(I drink ice cold water, splash my face in cold water and sit down with a stupid game to distract myself.)

Don't push your heart too hard when you have an iron deficiency as you know.  Gently does it.

13

I'm curious to know the difference between low and high iron. I've been taking ferrous sulphate 325mg 3x a day for a month then for like a week I've been taking it twice and now not only an I feeling symptoms of anemia again but they get10x worse when i take the pills. I'm dizzy 24/7 tired for a few hours after I get up headaches shortness of breath extreme nausea. TThee symptoms get worse every single time I reach for the pill. I only take one a day now and still I feel terrible after that one .

14

Hi Plashae,

Are you taking a good quality iron? I took iron from a local drug store for three months and my iron went down from 9 to 4. Soon as I got a quality iron, i was feeling better ina week and each week got better after that.  Your doc can run a blood work to see if the iron is working. If it is not, you might need a new one.  

Did you ever ask the doc to be tested for CD? If you have CD and do not treat it, often times, the iron won't do much good. If you have CD, nothing obsorbs. 

 

15

Idk if ferrous sulphate is good quality iron or not & no I never got tested for CD. I did a CBC test idk if CD shows up on a CBC . But the iron was working well for a while then it just stopped .

16

Celiac blood work is not the CBC.  Completly differnt tests. Read up on how to get tested and why it is important. Many beleive everyone should be tested, It is epedemic proportions. 1 out of every 120 people are believed to have it. That is a lot of folks! 

Anyone reading this, get tested. it could save your live from a living hell.

 

17

i presume that you are having an over usage of ferrous sulfate, did your doctor prescribed it that way? if so, try to consult him again for the side effects you are dealing with.