Ever felt unusually tired? Looking pale? Out of breath for no reason? Well, naturally. Most of us have at one point or another experienced one or all of these symptoms and have managed to recover from them without any major treatments or medications. This is part of the reason why anemia, with its very non-specific symptoms, is a very common disease that often goes undetected and untreated. Scientists have estimated that over 3.5 million people in the US suffer from anemia, many of whom don't even know it.
Most of us understand that red blood cells (also known as erythrocytes) are responsible for carrying oxygen to the trillions of cells in our body and returning carbon dioxide from these cells to the lungs for elimination. Erythrocytes are able to carry out this function because they contain the protein haemoglobin inside them. Insufficient amount of haemoglobin will result in deficiencies in the supply of oxygen to the cells. Thus, as a result, while people commonly define anemia as not having enough red blood cells, this is not technically always true. In fact, anemia is defined clinically as "a decrease in the level of haemoglobin in the blood below the reference level for the age and sex of the individual" (Kumar & Clark. 2005: 423).
For example, vegetarians often suffer from iron deficiency because of their diets. By not having enough iron, which is a necessary component of haemoglobins, vegetarians may have a normal amount of red blood cells in their body but because these cells do not contain adequate quantities of haemoglobin, vegetarians may suffer from anemia. Of course, there are also cases of anemia where there is an unusual level of red blood cell destruction occurring inside the body. These patients will naturally have a lower than normal red blood cell count. However, whatever the cause of the anemia, the result is the same. There is a deficiency in the supply of oxygen to the cells. Thus, in most cases, anemia is presented with similar symptoms and the differentiation between the different types is established later by the labs.
Patients suffering from anemia may be asymptomatic or in other words, have no symptoms whatsoever. After all, the human body is able to adapt to the slowly falling haemoglobin level over time. However, once your body can't cope with the low haemoglobin level anymore, you may start experiencing the following symptoms: fatigue, headaches, faintness and breathlessness. If severe enough, you may look pale and feel you have accelerated heart beats (tachycardia). In addition to these non-specific general symptoms which apply to all cases of anemia, there are also specific signs of the different types of anemia. For example, if the patient suffers from iron deficiency anemia, s/he may notice her/his nails are "spoon-shaped" (koilonychia). However, if s/he suffers from haemolytic anemia (a case where your body unnaturally destroys your red blood cells), her/his skin may appear yellow or jaundiced. In thalassemia major (a genetic disorder), the patient may also suffer from bone deformities because the bone marrow, where red blood cells are formed, is enlarged to compensate for the disease. Overall, symptoms and signs aside, the most accurate way to differentiate between the numerous types of anemia is through a blood examination by the labs.
Having discovered the exact type of anemia the patient is suffering from, treatment for that specific anemia can be administered to the patient. For instance, if the patient is suffering from iron deficiency (for microcytic anemia) or vitamin B12/folate deficiency (for macrocytic anemia), then the appropriate supplement or a more adequate diet can solve the problem. In other cases such as aplastic anemia (caused by bone marrow failure), the treatment of choice would be bone marrow transplantation. Unfortunately, for genetic disorders such as thalassemia, the only treatment so far is repetitive blood transfusions for the rest of the patient's life.
In conclusion, anemia is a disease that encompasses many non-specific symptoms, making it hard for individuals to realise that they suffer from anemia. This disease can arise from various causes, resulting in different consequences ranging from benign fatigue to potentially harmful tachycardia. Thus, it is important to be aware of the possible signs and symptoms that causes anemia as well as the helpful treatments.
References:
Kumar, P. and Clark, M. (2005) Clinical Medicine. USA: Elsevier Limited.
http://www.cureresearch.com/a/anemia/stats.h tm
http://www.who.int/topics/anemia/en/