European Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine

Geriatric anemia is a global health problem because of its high prevalence and associated significant morbidity and mortality. Aim To perform hematological evaluation of anaemia in 200 geriatric patients.  Research Design and Methods This was a hospital-based prospective observational study, conducted in 200 patients aged 60 years and above at SIMS, Hapur, NCR, a tertiary care center of North India from July 2022 to Dec 2022.  The hemoglobin level below 13 g/dl in men and below 12 g/dl in women is taken as anaemia. Results A total of 200 patients of age 60 years and above with anemia were evaluated for various hematological parameters. Data analysis was done using laboratory parameters like hemoglobin, Packed cell volume, MCV, MCH, MCHC, ferritin, transferrin saturation, C-reactive protein, vitamin B12 and folic acid.  Medical history and demographics was taken into consideration. Out of 200 patients, the etiological distribution of anemia showed Anemia of chronic disease (ACD) in 76 patients (38%), to be the most common cause , especially  Chronic kidney disease (CKD) in 37 patients(18.5%). This was followed by iron deficiency anemia in 65 geriatric patients (32.5%), multifactorial cause in 10 (5%), vitamin B12 deficiency in 13 (6.5 %), Anaemia due to hematological cause in 13 patients( 6.5%) folate deficiency in 6 (3%). No etiology for anemia could be found in 17( 8.5%) patients . Conclusions In most of the cases, anemia in the elderly had a treatable cause. Thus, a thorough investigation including gastrointestinal endoscopy is warranted. Unexplained progressive or unresponsive anemia requires bone marrow examination.