Why are the ferritin levels dropped despite medications?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 21 year old female. Yesterday, doctors have checked my blood. I am visiting a hospital frequently as I have iron deficiency anemia. The thing I am scared about is, my doctor asked me why my ferritin has not increased (just the opposite, it has decreased from 5.79 to 5.77) after three months of taking iron supplements. My other iron levels are at 39 which has increased considering those references. But, that was probably because I did not use the medicine correctly, I was only taking 5 mg a day. Another thing I am worried about is, my lymphocytes kind of got increased in my blood: (52.8) - the reference is 19.4 to 44.9, and the other one is 3.57. My neutrophils kind of decreased too (36.9) and the reference was between 41.0 to 73.0.

In the last week, I had a viral infection as both my parents were sick. Is it why my levels got high? My WBC is 6.77 and RBC is 4.52. My hemoglobin is also increasing actually, last time I checked, it was 11.0 and now it is 11.2. Still low, but it was good to see that it was increasing. My thrombocyte levels got higher again, unfortunately. The first time I was told that I was anemic, my thrombocyte levels were on 485, then in my second blood test (after using iron supplements correctly it decreased to 380. And yesterday, when I checked, it increased to 435 (reference is 156 to 373).

I was also told that I have an infection in my urinary system and he gave me antibiotics. Honestly, I have been always getting suspected about it since my anemia has started. Should I be worried about my condition or is it normal?

Kindly help.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

In viral infection, lymphocytosis means increased lymphocytes, and neutrophil is relatively low because of increased lymphocytes. Platelets can be high in iron deficiency anemia. It is not a matter of worry just now.

You can provide your reports to guide you further. Your hemoglobin level is mildly low, and you should be given a good iron-containing medication like Ferrous ascorbate. It should be taken without a break for the prescribed duration. The underlying cause for iron deficiency anemia should also be ruled out, such as bleeding, parasite infestation, etc. Repeat your CBC after a few days.

Thank you.