With the aging of our society, senile anemia is now becoming more and more common, with an incidence as high as 17%. Now the whole society is advocating to care about the health of the elderly, then the early diagnosis and treatment of senile anemia should be paid high attention to avoid causing more harm.
I. Why the elderly are prone to anemia
1.Related to the lack of hematopoietic materials
As we age, teeth fall out, taste buds shrink, and gastrointestinal function decreases, which inevitably affects the digestion and absorption of nutrients and leads to the lack of hematopoietic raw materials, resulting in insufficient production of red blood cells or hemoglobin.
Common anemias include iron deficiency anemia and nutritional megaloblastic anemia.
(1) Iron deficiency anemia.
The elderly are prone to iron deficiency due to reduced absorption of iron as a result of reduced gastric acid.
Strong tea drinkers, especially those who drink tea after meals, the tannic acid in tea can be combined with iron to affect iron absorption.
Older people are prone to hemorrhoids, anal fissures, and digestive tract cancer, resulting in chronic blood loss, which is also a common cause of iron deficiency anemia in the elderly.
(2) Nutritional megaloblastic anemia.
Because of the strong awareness of cardiovascular disease prevention among the elderly, they often go on a vegetarian diet to prevent hyperlipidemia, resulting in nutritional deficiency.
Some elderly people (especially widows and orphans) do not have a rich diet, which is the main cause of nutritional anemia.
Chronic stomach disease causes weakened absorption of dietary nutrients.
2. Related to the aging of hematopoietic function
Red bone marrow is the base of red blood cell production. As we grow older, the red bone marrow of the human body gradually decreases, leading to a decline in hematopoietic function and anemia.
3. It is related to the insufficient secretion of male androgen.
Older men do not produce enough testosterone, resulting in low hematopoietic function.
4.Many chronic diseases in the elderly
Common chronic diseases in the elderly such as infectious diseases, chronic cholecystitis, chronic gastritis, diabetes, arteriosclerosis, tumors, kidney disease, liver disease, etc., can cause anemia.
Second, the harm of senile anemia
Red blood cells can supply the O2 needed by the tissues and cells of the whole body and take away part of the CO2 produced, including the heart, brain, kidney and other important organs and tissues. Therefore, the decrease in the number of red blood cells (or hemoglobin content) directly causes the decrease in the function of human organs and the occurrence of lesions. Elderly people, especially those with chronic diseases, are in a state of hypoxia, and if anemia occurs again, their original chronic diseases will be aggravated.
Third, the performance of senile anemia
Elderly people with hematocrit between 9 and 11 grams are mildly anemic and generally have no obvious symptoms. When the hematocrit is below 8 grams, there are often mild or severe manifestations.
General symptoms: weakness, emaciation, decreased physical strength, pale or chlorotic face, ankle edema, etc.
Cardiovascular system symptoms: palpitations, shortness of breath, chest tightness, breath-holding, etc.
Neurological symptoms: dizziness, vertigo, lethargy, insomnia, memory loss. In severe cases, mental confusion, apathy, depression, and agitation may also occur, as well as fantasies and hallucinations. Numbness at the end of the limbs.
Digestive system symptoms: decreased appetite, even nausea and vomiting.
Patients often mistake heart disease and take cardiovascular medication on their own, which eventually leads to severe anemia.
Fourth, the importance of early diagnosis and early treatment
Early diagnosis and early treatment can prevent the occurrence of other diseases and help the quality of life of the elderly.
Early treatment has good effect and good prognosis.
V. Chinese medicine treatment has characteristics
The fundamental idea of TCM lies in the holistic concept and evidence-based treatment. The function of the organs of the elderly is gradually declining, and they are not well regulated, so they are prone to diseases of various systems. Therefore, Chinese medicine has obvious advantages in the prevention and treatment of senile anemia by starting from a holistic approach, comprehensive conditioning and prevention of pathologies.
For severe anemia, a combination of Chinese and Western medicine should be used to treat it, actively treat the primary disease and eliminate the cause; timely supplementation of iron, vitamin B12, folic acid and high-quality protein, etc.
Remind the elderly: once the manifestation of anemia appears, be sure to go to the hospital as soon as possible.