Vitamin B12 deficiency not uncommon

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Vitamin B12 deficiency not uncommon

Fransisca De Silva

Tuesday 24 October 2017, 09:51 AM

Vitamin B12 deficiency is quite common in vegans and vegetarians

An elderly patient’s pancytopenia and severe anaemia raises the possibility of bone marrow malignancy, but her full lab results reveal other possible causes

A 74-year-old female presents with blackouts and paraesthesia of her upper and lower limbs. She is very pale and has no lymphadenopathy or hepatosplen

Diet and Nutrition

References

1. Wickramasinghe S. Diagnosis of megaloblastic anaemias. Blood Rev 2006;20:299–318.

2. Dali-Youcef N, Andres E. An update on cobalamin deficiency in adults. Quart J Med 2009;102:17–28.

3. Schirier S. Diagnosis and treatment of B12 and folate deficiency. Aetiology and clinical manifestations of vitamin B12 and folate deficiency. UpToDate Online

4. Devalia V, Hamilton MS, Molloy AM. Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of cobalamin and folate disorders. Br J Haematol 2014;166:496–513.

5. Wong CW. Vitamin B12 deficiency in the elderly: Is it worth screening. Hong Kong Med J 2015;21(2):155–64.

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