[Causes of iron-deficiency anaemia in the internal medecine department of the national teaching hospital of Ouagadougou]. / Les étiologies des anémies ferriprives dans le service de médecine interne du centre hospitalier universitaire Yalgado-Ouédraogo de Ouagadougou.

This retrospective study in the internal medicine department of the national teaching hospital of Ouagadougou was conducted to identify the main causes of iron-deficiency anaemia. Among the 65 subjects meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria, mean haemoglobin was 7.5 g/dl, with mean serum ferritin 8.9 microg/l among women and 15.5 microg/l among men. The most common cause was chronic blood loss, and hookworm was a major cause in 19.6% of cases. These results suggest the need for preventive measures against iron deficiency and for reinforcement of the fight against diseases producing fecal blood loss.

[Types of anaemia in patients with cirrhosis at the Yalgado Ouedraogo hospital centre of Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso)]. / Les différents types d'anémie au cours des cirrhoses au Centre hospitalier universitaire Yalgado Ouedraogo de Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso).

During chronic diseases, patients may develop a specific form of anaemia called "inflammatory anaemia" or anaemia of chronic disease. The objective of this study was to study the forms of anaemia during cirrhosis. The leading cause of cirrhosis in these 161 patients was chronic active (viral) hepatitis, accounting for 58.3% of cases. The overall prevalence of anaemia was 74.5%. All types of anaemia were observed. Normochromic normocytic anaemia was observed in 43.3%, combined with blood loss in 48%. These results show that the hypochromic microcytic anaemia observed in 20% of cases is not exclusively linked to blood loss or iron deficiency. They also emphasise the importance of the haemogram interpretation to avoid routine iron prescription.

[What is your diagnosis? Hypochromic microcytic anemia with Evans syndrome or autoimmune thrombocytopenic purpura?]. / Quel est votre diagnostic? Anémie microcytaire hypochrome révélatrice d'un syndrome d'Evans ou purpura thrombopénique auto-immun?

We report a case of Evans syndrome associated with scleroderma in a 50-year-old woman admitted to the department of internal medicine of Yalgado Ouedraogo National Teaching Hospital in Burkina Faso. The interest of this case lies in on its mode of revelation: chronic bleeding that led to hypochromic microcytic anemia. The indirect antiglobulin test was positive. Corticosteroid treatment has been successful. Nonetheless, because autoimmune cytopenia may indicate underlying disorders, particularly lymphoid tissue malignancies, rigorous monitoring of this patient is essential.

[Maternal and neonatal iron status in Ivory Coast]. / Métabolisme du fer et valeurs érythrocytaires du nouveau-né ivoirien: relation avec le statut en fer de la mère.

Despite the high prevalence of neonatal anemia in Côte d'Ivoire, complete blood counts and iron studies have not been adequately explored. The authors studied complete blood counts (from peripheral blood mononuclear cells), hemoglobin electrophoresis results, and serum iron, ferritin and transferrin levels in 40 newborns and their mothers. The neonatal results (mean +/- SD) were: hemoglobin: 14.96 +/- 2.24 g/dl; serum iron: 16.88 +/- 7.29 micromol/l; total iron-binding capacity (TIBC): 39.88 +/- 14.85 micromol/l; transferrin: 2 +/- 0.65 g/l; ferritin: 116.20 +/- 105.25 microg/l; and hemoglobin electrophoresis: 22.5% of infants showed some hemoglobinopathy (FAC, FAS, FSA(2)). Maternal serum iron levels were positively correlated with the newborns' TIBC (r = 0.362, p<0.05), maternal ferritin with neonatal transferrin (r = 0.374, p<0.05), maternal transferrin coefficient of saturation (CS) with neonatal TIBC (r = 0.554, p<0.01). These results suggest a high prevalence of iron deficiency in mothers and a consequent potential risk of iron deficiency in their newborns in the absence of iron supplementation.