[The prevalence and etiology of anemia in urban community dwelling elderly population in Beijing]

Atopic Disease and Anemia in Korean Patients: Cross-Sectional Study with Propensity Score Analysis

Atopic disease is associated with chronic inflammation, and anemia has been reported in patients with inflammatory disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and irritable bowel disease. The objective of this study was to determine whether atopic disease is associated with an increased risk of anemia. A cross-sectional study with propensity score weighting was conducted using a health insurance review agency claims dataset comprised of randomized patients who used the Korean national health system at least once in 2016. The association between atopic disease (asthma, atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis) and anemia (iron deficiency anemia (IDA) and/or anemia of inflammation (AI)) was examined. A total of 1,468,033 patients were included in this study. The IDA/AI prevalence was 3.1% (45,681 patients). After propensity score weighting, there were 46,958 and 45,681 patients in the non-anemic and anemic groups, respectively. The prevalence of IDA/AI in patients with atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, or asthma had an odds ratio (OR) of 1.40 (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.33–1.48; p < 0.001), 1.17 (95% CI, 1.14–1.21; p < 0.001), and 1.32 (95% CI, 1.28–1.36; p < 0.001), respectively. In addition, the prevalence of IDA increased with higher numbers of atopic diseases. In conclusion, the prevalence of IDA/AI was higher in patients with atopic disease, even after adjusting for demographic characteristics and other risk factors. Further study is needed to distinguish between IDA and AI and to enhance understanding of the etiology of anemia in patients with inflammatory conditions.

Prevalence of Nutritional Anemia and Hyperhomocysteinemia in Urban Elderly

The data on the prevalence of nutritional anemia among the urban elderly population in India was limited. Hence, the present study was carried out with an aim to assess the prevalence of nutritional anemia and its association with vitamin B12, folate, ferritin and homocystine among the urban elderly population. A community- based cross-sectional study was carried out among 282 urban elderly (≥ 60 years) subjects (186 males and 96 females) in Hyderabad. Fasting blood samples were collected and hemoglobin (Hb) was estimated by cyanmethemoglobin method. Plasma Folic acid and vitamin B12 levels were estimated by RIA and homocysteine and ferritin levels were estimated by ELISA methods. The overall prevalence of anemia (Hb < 12 g/dL for females and < 13 g/dL for males) among the urban elderly was 20.6% and the prevalence was found to be increasing with the age. The prevalence of vitamin B12 (< 203 pg/mL), folic acid (< 4 ng/mL), ferritin (< 15 ng/mL) and hyperhomocysteinemia (≥ 12 µmol/L) in these subjects was 36.0%, 8.2%, 1.1% and 24.3% respectively. The prevalence of anemia due to deficiencies of iron (ferritin < 15 ng/mL), folate and vitamin B12 was 5.45%, 9.1% and 42.3% respectively. A significant association was observed between the prevalence of anemia with ferritin and hyperhomocysteinemia. In conclusion, the prevalence of anemia and nutritional anemia among the urban-based elderly was 20.6% and 56.85% respectively. The association of anemia with hyperhomocysteinemia needs further studies.

Association of anaemia with Helicobacter pylori infection: a retrospective study

The role of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection in haematological system diseases is not well understood. We conducted this retrospective study to explore the association between H. pylori infection and anaemia in the Chinese population. This retrospective study was performed in Aerospace Center Hospital in Beijing. We derived the data from the registration system of the physical population between 2012-2016. Logistic regression models were used to explore the association between H. pylori infection and anaemia. Among 17,791 subjects, there were 7,804 (43.9%) subjects with H. pylori infection and 950 (5.3%) with anaemia. The prevalence of anaemia in the H. pylori (+) group was significantly higher than in the H. pylori (-) group after adjusting for age, sex, marriage, underlying diseases and body mass index. Compared to H. pylori (-), the OR of H. pylori (+) was 1.39 for moderate-to-severe anaemia and 1.05 for mild anaemia. The level of haemoglobin was lower in the H. pylori (+) group than in the H. pylori (-) group. This study indicates that H. pylori infection may be related to anaemia and haemoglobin level in the Chinese population.