Case Study 1: Anemia
Situation: The client is a 77 – year – old widow who relies on her late husband’s savings for all her expenses. Over the past few years, she has eaten less and less meat because of her financial situation and the trouble of preparing a meal “just for me”. She also has medicines to buy for the treatment of hypertension and arthritis. Over the past 2 to 3 months, she has felt increasingly tired, despite sleeping well at night. When she goes to the clinic, the doctor orders blood work. The lab results are as follows: WBC 7.6 thou/cmm, Hct 27.3%, Hgb 8.3 mg/dl, platelets 151 thou/cmm. RBC indices are mean corpuscular volume 65 cmm, mean corpuscular hemoglobin 31.6 pg, MCH concentration 35.1%, red cell distribution width …show more content…

In children and pregnant women especially, the body needs more iron. Pregnant and nursing women frequently develop this deficiency since the baby requires large amounts of iron for growth. Lack of iron can lead to low birth weight babies and premature delivery. Pre – pregnant and pregnant women are routinely given iron supplements to prevent these complications. Newborns who are nursing from deficient mothers tend to have iron deficiency anemia. * Absorption problem: certain conditions affect the absorption of iron from food in the gastrointestinal tract and over time can result to anemia. These include celiac disease and crohn’s disease.

5. Which individuals are at risk? * Pregnant women * Menstruating women * Adolescents * Children * Infants * Older people * People who are economic constraints, poor dentition and lack of interest in food preparation

6. Describe some of the other signs and symptoms of this type of anemia. * The most common signs and symptoms include: feeling of tiredness, fatigue and lack of energy * Brittle or spoon – shaped nail * Swollen or sore tongue * Cracks or ulcers at the corners of the mouth * Pica

7. Discuss some of the treatment options for her disease. * Diagnosis of and correction of the underlying cause * Treatment through diet and supplemental iron preparation

8. Discuss some ideas