I am a 57 year old male. I've been feeling very tired and run down over the past months. I've been suffering from bouts of dizziness and my balance has become a real problem. My G.P. has run a whole range of blood tests. One of the tests carried out was Iron Profile and another was the Haematinics Profile. The results are as follows: Transferrin Saturation Index - 18% (20.00-50.00%).
Unsaturated Iron Binding Cap. - 58 umol/L (27.80-53.70umol/L).
Saturated Iron Binding Cap. - 70.7umol/L
Serum Iron Level - 12.7umol/L (8.00-32.00umol/L
HAEMATINICS PROFILE:
Serum Vitamin B12 - 800ng/L (211.00-911.00ng/L)
Serum Folate - 12.9ug/L (3.00-19.00ug/L)
Serum Ferritin - 45ug/L ( 22.00 - 322.00ug/L)
The haemoglobin estimation result is 167g/L (135.00-172.00g/L)
I would be extremely grateful for an opinion on these results.
My G.P. is telling me that I don't need to be prescribed any Iron supplements here.
I look forward to hearing from one or more of you knowledgeable members.
Many thanks.
🙂👍
Written by
Henbud
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The forum is used mainly by people with PA (Pernicious Anaemia), an autoimmune condition that leads to B12 deficiency. It's also used by people with B12 deficiency from other causes.
There is a form of anaemia associated with PA called megaloblastic anaemia where red blood cells are larger than normal.
This is different to iron deficiency anaemia.
People with PA can also have iron deficiency anaemia.
Your serum B12 is within normal range but quite far up the range.
Are you taking B12 supplements or having B12 injections?
Functional B12 deficiency
It's possible to have Functional B12 deficiency, where there is plenty of B12 in the blood but it's not getting to where it's needed in the cells so person develops B12 deficiency symptoms.
Are your symptoms consistent with B12 deficiency?
Some UK GPs may not be familiar with Functional B12 deficiency so you may need to nudge them to consider this.
MMA, homocysteine and Active B12 (holotranscobalamin) tests can help to diagnose functional B12 deficiency.
High B12 levels without supplementing/injections can sometimes be a sign of a serious health condition......I would expect a GP to check liver and kidney function and to order further blood tests eg full blood count (FBC).
Might be helpful to type out Full Blood Count results if you have them.
PAS (Pernicious Anaemia Society) website has lots of useful info about PA.
Your ferritin is low but before supplementing it’s recommended that you have a full iron panel. This is because you can have low ferritin but high iron. Supplementing with iron without knowing the full picture could be dangerous. It’s worth asking your GP about the test but in my experience they’re not particularly familiar with it. Many on the thyroid forum, where I usually lurk, use private finger prick tests to determine their iron status.
Out of interest, have you had your thyroid levels checked?
Thank you for taking the time to reply.This is very interesting. Is the Full Iron Panel different to the Iron Profile Test that I've just had done? I have had the thyroid function checked. The result is Serum TSH Level 2.35miu/L ( 0.30-5.00miu/L).
It is possible that you are iron deficient without anaemia as your ferritin level is low. This is a recognised condition but, it seems to me, few GPs know about it. It is tricky to diagnose and it is another instance where symptoms are far more important than tests. I saw a haematologist privately who was prepared to administer a ferritin infusion and see what happened. I also self-prescribed haem iron as the synthetics had a bad effect. It worked.
I don't know if this is relevant to you but thought you might be interested...
Low iron can lead to small red blood cells (microcytosis).
Low B12 (and low folate) can lead to large red blood cells (macrocytosis).
A person with both low iron and low B12 may appear to have normal sized red blood cells on full blood count (FBC) as effects of iron deficiency may mask effects of b12 deficiency.
It's even trickier to work out whats causing what in a person with B12, folate and iron deficiencies.
I would suggest you see a specialist in iron, a Dr K in Cambridge, who's also a B12 specialist.
My transferrin saturation % was also 18, which was a significant deficiency according to Dr K, and my ferritin was 30. I was having EOD B12 injections and needed an iron infusion.
Thank you Mixteca. I sincerely hope you're now feeling better following Dr K's involvement. This is very interesting. Would you mind sending me the full contact details for Dr K? What were your symptoms before you managed to get the appropriate treatment? Did any of your symptoms resemble any of mine?
What did your G.P. make of your blood results? I'm getting the feeling that my G.P. perhaps isn't fully understanding my test results.
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