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In The Lab, Medicine, Men's Health, Women's Health

IN THE LAB: TESTS FOR AND DIAGNOSING “aNEMIA”

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I should have known something was wrong.

I was getting short of breath with a third of a 45-minute exercise I had done for years, but I rationalized it away. I reasoned that I hadn’t been sleeping well, I am getting old. And my heart isn’t working as well because of the Atrial Fibrillation.

Physicians have a big armamentarium of excuses they can generate, and besides it is their Karma to GIVE Medical care rather than to RECEIVE it.

The AHA moment came when I bumped my leg, and peeled back some skin. My skin is old and fragile, and I’m always tearing it in small areas.

This time, I got to see the blood run all the way down my leg like a drop of grape juice, not the thick blood I’m used to. If anything, my blood should be thicker, more viscous, since my average Hemoglobin is 16 gm., on the high side of normal.

I got my blood drawn, and ordered a CBC and a ferritin. The CBC shows the Hemoglobin level, and a number of other measurements bearing on anemia, and the ferritin gives a measure of IRON STORES.

I can’t remember the first time my ferritin was ordered, or why, but it has for years been borderline, just barely in the normal range, dipping down as low as 18, and rising as high as 35.

Since a common cause of low iron stores with a good diet is colon cancer, I had about 3 colonoscopies to rule out cancer over a period of 6 years; lucky me.

At least they were all negative, and without polyps.

This time the ferritin was 12, well into the abnormal range, and the Hemoglobin was 8.6 gm. little more than half my usual.

I had been fibrillating for 5 months, and been on 5 mg. Eliquis ( an anticoagulant/blood thinner) for the same period. Having a recent normal colonoscopy, the most likely diagnosis was AVMs (arteriovenous malformations) of the small bowel, with bleeding accelerated by the Eliquis,

Since small bowel surgery contraindicated a diagnostic videocapsule, this diagnosis would have to remain an assumption.

I reduced the Eliquis by 25%, calculated my blood loss rate and started 2 capsules of feosol alternating with 3 capsules daily. Over a period of 4 months, my Hemoglobin came back up to 15 gm., and my ferritin came up to 50. I am due another test as soon as I get enough nerve to brave the Covid and go to the lab.

This story is a good illustration of treating one illness, and thereby creating another in this world awash with medication. How much better it is to stay as healthy as possible.

However, I am becoming increasingly aware of the fact that Health is not often the top priority in most peoples lives.

As an illustration, I refer to todays’ Sunday New York Times, which reviewed 2 books on walking, one written to praise its’ health benefits. To quote the reviewer, “

The issue with ‘ in praise of walking’ is Mr. O’Mara’s assumption that how good an activity may be for us is the most essential measure of its worth”. Praising health raises an issue?

Personally, my main exercise is walking, and I do it expressly for health. That doesn’t mean that I don”t enjoy walking and have other motivations. I would not be walking as FAST, however, it it were not so healthy.

–Dr.C.

Medicine, Men's Health, Rx, Women's Health

DR. C’S MEDICINE CABINET: “WHY PATIENTS TAKE ELIQUIS”

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Eliquis nicely illustrates my contention in the Overview of Metabolism, that the body is a vast collection of pathways, or “supply chains”. Eliquis blocks a critical enzyme in the pathway leading to coagulation, or clotting” as the product.

Why in the world you want to block clotting? The staunching of blood flow, clotting, has saved countless hordes of early, Paleolithic humans, and continued useful through the bloody Roman and Medieval times, right through the violent 20th Century.

Recently, however, wars are becoming somewhat less popular, and eating excessively more popular, leading to a strange situation. Our evolutionarily-preserved CLOTTING mechanism is now leading to MORE problems than it is solving.

Obesity and type 2 Diabetes are leading to the production of so much fat, that it has to be stored in our arterial walls, clogging the blood flow to our Hearts and Brain, among other areas. This, and the somewhat surprising trend towards longer lives has led to an increase in a variety of age-related illnesses.

When I reached 80 years of age I developed Atrial Fibrillation, a condition leading to a tendency to form clots in my quivering atria, the upper chambers of my heart. To decrease the likelihood of clots getting into my blood stream, lodging in my brain and causing STROKE, my cardiologist started me on Eliquis, an anti-coagulant/blood thinner.

Drugs have three names. The proprietary name, Eliquis in this case, is given by the patenting company to be memorable; q,z,and x are popular letters. The second is the FDA drug name, Apixaban. The drug name often gives the doctor a clue as to its type: xaban refers to inhibiting (banning) of factor 10a (Xa). The third name is a chemical name of interest to biochemists and drug researchers.

When I started the Eliquis, at first unknown to me, I started to bleed internally, leading to a drop in my hemoglobin down to 8.6. I will go into this story when I start going through “how to read your laboratory report”.

I found that reducing my Eliquis from 5mg. to 3.75 mg. allowed me stabilize my hemoglobin by taking extra iron, which I will discuss later.

The doseage selected when the drug company markets a drug is fairly arbitrary, and usually involves round numbers. Interestingly, there is a 2.5mg. Eliquis, which is given if you meet 2 out of 3 criteria. I meet only one and am only 5 pounds shy of the second, in case you think (like my cardiologist does) that I’m taking a risk.

I believe that, whenever you are given a medication, you should be educated about the medicine, and the problem it is intended to benefit. Today’s physician often does not have the time to do this. The internet, including this website, offers a corrective.

I am trying my best to be helpful to you as a Patient Advocate. You and I both must have a doctor to rely upon. But to get the most out of our care, WE MUST BE INFORMED.

–Dr. C