[Macrocytosis without anaemia in an urban population].
OBJECTIVE
Observational study on a group of patients with macrocytosis without anaemia. The probable relationship of cause and effect between Helicobacter pylori and macrocytosis.


METHODS
An observational and cross-sectional study.


METHODS
The measured variables were: personal data, medical and analytical history in relation to macrocytosis, alcohol and smoking habits and drug use. This information was taken from the medical history of the patient.


RESULTS
The prevalence of macrocytosis without anaemia was 7.12%. The main cause found was hypothyroidism in 37/234 (15.8%) patients, followed by alcoholism in 34/234 (14.5%) patients. The most frequent association was alcohol and tobacco in 9/234 (3.8%) patients. It was not possible to find a cause of the increased mean corpuscular volume (MCV) in 87/234 (37.18%) patients. Out of 37 tests conducted for Helicobacter pylori, 23 of them were positive.


CONCLUSIONS
Macrocytosis without anaemia has a high prevalence. Finding the most frequent causes could help in the early diagnosis and treatment. H. pylori currently appears to be associated to different digestive tract and non-digestive tract diseases.It could be a cause of increased MCV, but this study was unable demonstrate this.
Domínguez Ruiz de León
Paloma
P
Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria, Área 2, Madrid, Spain. pdruizdeleon@yahoo.es
Morcillo Cebolla
Victoria
V
Gutiérrez Parres
Blanca
B
Cirujano Pita
Francisco Javier
FJ
Díaz de Tuesta Díaz de Lezama
Elvira
E
Mazorra Benito
Elena
E
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000740:Anemia; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004913:Erythrocytes, Abnormal; D005260:Female; D006402:Hematologic Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014505:Urban Population; D055815:Young Adult