A Brief Understanding of Ferritin Blood Test
A patient who doesn’t have enough or has excess ferritin in his or her blood, it can give the doctor hints about the patient’s general iron levels. The more the patient has ferritin in his or her blood, the more they have iron stored in their body.
Symptoms of low ferritin levels
A doctor can order ferritin test if the patient shows the following signs which are associated with low ferritin blood levels:
Baffling fatigue
Severe headaches
Dizziness
Unexplained weakness
Continuous ringing in the patient’s ears
Pain in the legs
Shortness of breath
Irritability
Signs of high ferritin levels
Someone can also have extremely high ferritin levels, which can have the following symptoms:
Stomach pains
Chest pains or heart palpitations
Baffling fatigue
Pain in the joints
Unexplained weakness
Ferritin levels can increase in case the patient has damage to his or her organs like the spleen and liver. A doctor can use ferritin blood test to monitor the patient's general health, especially if the patient has iron-related conditions which can cause the patient to have excess or too little iron in their blood.
How is the test done?
Ferritin blood test usually requires the doctor to extract a small amount of blood from the patient in order to accurately analyze the patient's ferritin levels. During the test, a doctor applies a band around the patient's arm to make his or her veins more visible. Next, the doctor wipes the patient's skin with an antiseptic swab and then inserts a small needle into the patient's vein to get a blood sample. The doctor then sends the sample to a laboratory for examination. The patient does not have to observe any special safety measures before undergoing the blood test.
Test results
The results of the patient’s ferritin blood test are first analyzed to check whether the ferritin levels are in the normal range. The typical ranges of blood ferritin are
20 – 500 nanograms per milliliter for men
20 – 200 nanograms per milliliter for women
However, people undergoing ferritin blood tests should understand that the levels of ferritin in the blood differ from lab to lab. The ranges indicated above are the typical blood ferritin ranges, and different laboratories can have different values. A patient should ask his or her doctor the normal ferritin range of their lab when checking whether the blood ferritin levels are within the normal range.
How to prepare for ferritin blood test
If the patient’s blood sample is being tested for ferritin only, then he or she can have a regular meal before the test. However, if the blood sample requires undergoing additional tests, then the patient might be required not to eat for a certain period before the test is performed. The doctor usually gives the patient specific instructions before the test. But, most doctors say that ferritin blood test is more accurate when taken in the morning and the patient hasn’t taken a meal for some time.
