Question

Clinical case

A woman has thalassemia.
She has pale skin and gums, fatigue, and headaches.
She has been treated with transfusions since childhood.
Her jaw is enlarged; she has had two leg fractures in the past year.
She has Heinz bodies .
Her liver is enlarged; she has jaundice and liver failure.
Which of these signs and symptoms are due to anemia, which to compensatory erythropoiesis, and which to treatment?

Answer 1

The patient with thalassemia exhibits symptoms of anemia like pale skin, fatigue, and headaches, signs of compensatory erythropoiesis such as jaw enlargement and Heinz bodies, and complications from treatment including leg fractures and liver failure.

Step-by-step explanation:

The clinical case of a woman with thalassemia presents various signs and symptoms that can be attributed to anemia, compensatory erythropoiesis, and the treatment regimen she has undergone. The symptoms such as pale skin and gums, fatigue, and headaches are indicative of anaemia, which in thalassemia is caused by the abnormal synthesis of globin proteins and the reduced capacity of haemoglobin to carry oxygen.

Compensatory erythropoiesis, which is the body's attempt to increase red blood cell (RBC) production due to anemia, can lead to signs such as enlarged jaw and the presence of Heinz bodies (aggregates of denatured hemoglobin) within red blood cells. The enlarged liver or hepatomegaly and the development of jaundice are related to the excessive destruction of erythrocytes, causing high levels of bilirubin.

The leg fractures could be a result of bone marrow expansion due to erythropoiesis or may also be linked to the iron overload from chronic blood transfusions, which is a common treatment for thalassemia and can lead to complications such as liver failure.