The anaemic inpatient. A survey of current hospital practice.
The haemoglobin levels of all patients in a large teaching hospital (except those receiving cytotoxic chemotherapy or radiotherapy) were examined over a three-week period. One hundred and eleven patients with haemoglobin levels below 100 g/L were found, and the approach to this problem by the clinicians was scrutinized. In most patients, there was a good and obvious explanation for the anaemia; in just under 50%, however, the causes were often mixed or less obvious. Frequently the anaemia was not investigated when, perhaps, it should have been and, when treated, it was often treated inappropriately. Excessive, inappropriate and indiscriminate use of oral iron therapy was a prominent finding.
D000740:Anemia / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients; D007501:Iron / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011446:Prospective Studies
D007501:Iron