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From our experts: Practical tips for managing iron deficiency anemia

In our latest clinical practice update, experts outline best practice advice statements for this common nutritional deficiency.
Nurse takes blood test of a young woman in laboratory
Nurse takes blood test of a young woman in laboratory

Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency worldwide and affects between one to four percent of men and at least 39% of premenopausal women.

AGA’s latest clinical practice update, authored by Drs. Thomas DeLoughery, Christian Jackson, Cynthia Ko and Don Rockey, reviews options for oral and IV iron repletion and provides best practices for management of iron deficiency in common gastrointestinal conditions. 

This CPU addresses iron deficiency anemia in the context of bariatric surgery, inflammatory bowel disease, portal hypertensive gastropathy, gastric antral vascular ectasia, celiac disease and small-bowel angioectasias.

Hear from our authors:

Watch as Drs. Cynthia Ko, Don Rockey and Christian Jackson highlight a few of the key takeaways that they want clinicians to carry into their practice.

Key takeaways

  • Intravenous iron should be used in patients that don't tolerate oral iron, when ferritin levels do not improve with a trial of oral iron, or in patients with conditions in which oral iron is not likely to be absorbed, such as active inflammatory bowel disease or after bariatric surgery.

  • All intravenous iron formulations have similar risks and true anaphylaxis is very rare. The vast majority of reactions to intravenous iron are infusion reactions and should be treated as such.

  • Management of iron deficiency anemia includes both repletion of iron stores, and, if possible, management of the underlying cause.

Read the full AGA Clinical Practice Update on Management of Iron Deficiency Anemia: Expert Review, published in the August issue of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.

See the full 15 best practice advice statements on our clinical guidance page. 

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