Iron deficiency in women and Black patients is not often resolved in a short span as treatment lags, according to a new study.
Published in the American Society of Hematology’s Publications scientific journal, researchers found that, even after three years, almost 60% of people diagnosed with iron deficiency were still dealing with the health problem. The study included more than 13,000 people who received an anemia diagnosis within a 10-year span from 2010 to 2020.
Overall, the median time for resolution was approximately 1.9 years, although only about 7% of study participants saw their iron levels return to normal in the first year.
In certain demographics, iron deficiency was found to be harder to treat. While men, those over 60 and those with Medicare were all more likely to have their anemia treated and resolved, women and Black patients were found to be more likely to stay iron deficient and lag in proper treatment to resolve their deficiency.
Issues in treatment included a lack of awareness about the diagnosis and an inability to get diagnosed in a proper time frame.
“Two years is too long and well beyond the timeframe within which iron deficiency should be able to be sufficiently treated and resolved [with oral or IV treatments],” said lead researcher Dr. Jacob Cogan, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota per a press release. “The numbers are pretty striking and suggest a need to put systems in place to better identify patients and treat them more efficiently.”
Women, Black patients face time lag in treating iron deficiency – The Washington Post – Nearly 60 percent of people with iron deficiency still had it three years after their diagnosis, a new study says. … assistant professor of medicine … – https://t.co/YvJjRxN2Kn
— The Postdoctoral (@thepostdoctoral) September 2, 2024
Overall, previous studies have found that Black women are more likely to deal with iron deficiency.
According to a 2024 study published in JAMA Network Open, Black women in the U.S. are approximately five times more likely to pass away from issues such as postpartum hemorrhage because of their high rate of iron deficiency.
Despite recording higher rates, significant racial disparities in screening have been identified. Per researchers, out of 16,073 pregnant women, Black women were found to be less likely to be screened for anemia compared to pregnant white women despite recording higher rates of anemia.
Still, they received prescriptions for iron supplements, even though they weren’t accurately diagnosed.
“This suggests a frequent practice at our institution of empirically prescribing iron supplementation in the absence of laboratory workup for iron deficiency, especially among African Americans,” said the researchers of the study. “Next steps include further evaluation as to whether this is an effective approach to treating anemia in pregnancy, or whether additional anemia work up is warranted in this population.”
