The relationship between iron deficiency anemiaand HbA1C level

Objective: Iron deficiency anemia is a very common health problem in the society. Approximately 24.8% of the world population is found to be anemic. Approximately 500 million of these anemic patients have iron deficiency anemia. HbA1c value measurements are very important in the follow-up of glucose regulation and are preferred in daily practice. The effect of iron deficiency anemia on HbA1c is still not fully clarified. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of iron deficiency anemia on HbA1c levels before and after treatment in individuals without a history of diabetes mellitus. Materials and Methods: In our study, we retrospectively included 75 individuals of the ages between 18 and 65 who attended to the outpatient clinics of Bezmialem Vakıf University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine between December 2020 and December 2021. These individuals with a hemoglobin value below 12 mg/dl were defined as the anemic patient group. These patients, who were started on iron treatment, were called for control 8-12 weeks after receiving the treatment. Patients with exclusion criteria were not included in the study. The relationship between hemogram, biochemical and other iron parameters (iron, iron binding capacity, ferritin) of the groups before and after treatment included in the study with HbA1c value was investigated. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the groups in the study in terms of mean age, body mass index, blood biochemistry values (AST, ALT, Urea, Creatinine, Folate levels. The pre-treatment B12 median value of the patients was 262(127- 540) pg/ml, while the post-treatment B12 median value was 354.5(127-1345) pg/ml. There is a statistically significant difference between the two median values (p<0.001). The serum HbA1c level before the treatment of iron deficiency anemia was 5.33±0.37 and the HbA1c was 5.08±0.44 after the treatment. The difference between the groups was statistically significant (p<0.001). While the mean glucose value of the patients before the treatment was 91.27±8.5 mg/dl, the mean glucose value after the treatment was 88.32±9.37 mg/dl, and a statistically significant difference was found between the two mean values (p=0.008). Conclusion: Serum HbA1c level was found to be statistically significantly higher in patients with iron deficiency anemia. By means of the treatment of patients with iron deficiency anemia, both the negative effects of anemia primarily improved and the HbA1c value significantly decreased. Keywords: Iron Deficiency Anemia, HbA1c