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Ferritin is found in most tissues as a cytosolic protein, but small amounts are secreted into the serum where it functions as an iron carrier. Plasma ferritin is also an indirect marker of the total amount of iron stored in the body; hence, serum ferritin is used as a diagnostic test for iron-deficiency anemia and iron overload. [4]
Iron tests are groups of clinical chemistry laboratory blood tests that are used to evaluate body iron stores or the iron level in blood serum. Other terms used for the same tests are iron panel , iron profile , iron indices , iron status or iron studies .
Serum iron is a medical laboratory test that measures the amount of circulating iron that is bound to transferrin and freely circulate in the blood. Clinicians order this laboratory test when they are concerned about iron deficiency, which can cause anemia and other problems. 65% of the iron in the body is bound up in hemoglobin molecules in red blood cells.
Serum ferritin falls to less than 20 ng/mL. Increased iron absorption, a compensatory change, results in an increased amount of transferrin and consequently increased iron-binding capacity. [4] Stage 2 – Erythropoiesis is impaired. In spite of an increased level of transferrin, serum iron level is decreased along with transferrin saturation.
Serum ferritin testing is a low-cost, readily available, and minimally invasive method for assessing body iron stores. However ferritin levels may be elevated due to a variety of other causes including obesity, infection, inflammation (as an acute phase protein ), chronic alcohol intake, liver disease, kidney disease, and cancer.
Taken together with serum iron and percent transferrin saturation clinicians usually perform this test when they are concerned about anemia, iron deficiency or iron deficiency anemia. However, because the liver produces transferrin, alterations in function (such as cirrhosis, hepatitis, or liver failure) must be considered when performing this ...
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