Batı Karadeniz Bölgesinde yaşayan Türk erişkinlerinde demir, ferritin, B12 vitamini ve folat gibi anemi parametrelerinin referans aralıkları uygun mudur?

Objective: Widespread causes of anemia are the deficiencies of iron, vitamin B12 and folate. The exact diagnosis is based on the laboratory data determined according to the appropriate reference ranges along with clinical symptoms. International Federation of Clinical Chemistry (IFCC) and Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) have suggested that each laboratory should determine their own reference values. In this study, we aim to determine reference intervals of anemia parameters in a large cohort of Turkish adults and to investigate whether these values confirm with data sheets of commercial kits. Methods: Healthy 1251 subjects were included in the study. Subjects were divided into six groups according to their ages. Levels of serum iron, unsaturated iron binding capacity (UIBC), ferritin, vitamin B12 and folate, and complete blood counts of all participants were determined. Results: There were significant differences between genders in terms of serum iron, ferritin, UIBC, folate levels and mean corpuscular volume (MCV). While levels of iron, UIBC, ferritin, and MCV were higher in males, vitamin B12 and folate levels were higher in females. MCV, folate and vitamin B12 levels were higher in middle aged adults, and lower in the young and elderly. Conclusion: There wasn't much difference between our results and previous studies and manufacturers' ranges except the ferritin and iron levels. Therefore, reference ranges are not required to be determined again. It was concluded that, high upper limits of serum iron and ferritin levels may be caused by inflammation so that these levels is not appropriate as a reference range unless evaluated together with inflammatory markers such as CRP, but lower levels may be valuable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]