Etiological spectrum of anemia in elderly in Marrakech (Morocco)

Abstract

Introduction: Anemia is a common problem among the elderly, which requires an etiological research. Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate the frequency of different causes of anemia in the elderly. Patients and methods: This is a retrospective study performed in the department of Hematology, CHU Mohamed VI Marrakech, from the 1 st January, 2008 to December 31, 2010. Including criteria was all patients older than 65 years with anemia. Results: One hundred and six cases of anemia were collected (average of 35 cases per year). The average age of patients was 72 years (66-99 years), 58% of patients were male and 42% female (sex ratio M / F: 1, 4). The clinical signs were dominated by pallor (100%), asthenia (100%) and cardiovascular signs (56.6%). Mean hemoglobin was 7.2 g / dl (3.2 - 9.4 g / dl). The etiology of anemia was identified in 90 % of cases. The causes were dominated by nutritional deficiency (37.8 %), anemia of inflammation (19 %) and myelodysplastic syndromes (15 %). Conclusion: nutritional deficiency is the first cause of anemia in the elderly. Their detection and early correction reduce the impact of anemia in terms of morbidity and mortality and improve quality of life in this patient population.