Always tired? Check for anaemia

Anaemia's symptoms — fatigue, headaches, coldness, brain fog — often get attributed to ageing

- Paula Span

NEW YORK — Mr. Gary Sergott felt weary all the time. "I'd get tired, short of breath, a sort of malaise," he said.

He was cold even on warm days and looked pale with dark circles under his eyes.

His malady was not mysterious. As a retired nurse-anesthetist, Mr. Sergott knew he had anaemia, a deficiency of red blood cells.

In his case, it was the consequence of a hereditary condition that caused almost daily nosebleeds and depleted his haemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that delivers oxygen throughout the body.

But in consulting doctors about his fatigue, he found that many did not know how to help. They advised Mr. Sergott to take iron tablets, usually the first-line treatment for anaemia.

But like many older people, he found a daily regimen of four to six tablets hard to tolerate.

Some patients taking iron complain of severe constipation or stomach cramps. Mr. Sergott felt "nauseated all the time." And iron tablets do not always work.

After almost 15 years, he found a solution. Dr. Michael Auerbach, a haematologist and an oncologist who is the co-director of the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders in Baltimore, suggested that Mr. Sergott receive iron intravenously instead of orally.

Now Mr. Sergott, 78, gets an hour-long infusion when his haemoglobin levels and other markers show that he needs one, usually three times a year.

"It's like filling the gas tank," he said. His symptoms recede and "I feel great."

FREQUENT DISMISSAL OF COMMON CONDITION

His story reflects, however, the frequent dismissal of a common condition, one that can not only diminish older adults' quality of life, but also lead to serious health consequences, including falls, fractures and hospital stays.