Last updated on 3rd Sep 2022 - By Dwayne Michaels

Most common symptoms of high ferritin :

Left untreated, high ferritin can cause many health problems, such as:

Chest pain

Chest pain is pain or discomfort in the chest, typically the front of the chest. Chest pain may be described as sharp, dull, pressure, heaviness or squeezing. Chest pain may present in different ways depending upon the underlying diagnosis, and high ferritin is one of the causes of chest pain.

Without treatment, an accumulation of iron can lead to health complications such as congestive heart failure if too much iron builds up in the heart and the body cannot circulate enough blood.

Unexplained fatigue

Fatigue is a feeling of tiredness. It may be sudden or gradual in onset. A person with fatigue may find it physically hard to do the things they usually do, such as climbing the stairs.

However, it may be a symptom of a medical condition if it is prolonged, severe, progressive, or occurs without provocation. The ferritin levels measured usually have a direct correlation with the total amount of iron stored in the body.

If ferritin is high, there is iron in excess or else there is an acute inflammatory reaction in which ferritin is mobilized without iron excess. For example, ferritins may be high in infection without signaling body iron overload. Unexplained fatigue or Unexplained weakness is one of the symptoms of iron overload or high ferritin levels.

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Stomach pain

Stomach ache is a symptom associated with both non-serious and serious medical issues. The most frequent reasons for abdominal pain are gastroenteritis (13%), irritable bowel syndrome (8%), urinary tract problems (5%), inflammation of the stomach (5%) and constipation.

But high ferritin levels may also be a cause of abdominal pain. Seek prompt medical care if your abdomen becomes swollen or distended. Also, seek prompt medical are if you are being treated for hemochromatosis (iron overload) but your symptoms persist, recur, or cause you concern.

Unexplained weight loss

Weight loss, in the context of medicine, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat, or lean mass.

Weight loss can either occur unintentionally because of malnourishment or an underlying disease, or from a conscious effort to improve an actual or perceived overweight or obese state.

"Unexplained" weight loss that is not caused by reduction in calorific intake or exercise is called cachexia and may be a symptom of a serious medical condition. One of the symptoms of high ferritin is unexplained weight loss. Unexplained weight loss is generally regarded as a medical problem when at least 10% of a person's body weight has been lost in six months or 5% in the last month.

Joint pain

Joint pain is one of the most common symptoms of high ferritin, which is also called hemochromatosis. The pain is caused by iron deposits in the joints that can result in arthritis. Arthritis is a term often used to mean any disorder that affects joints.

Pain, which can vary in severity, is a common symptom in virtually all types of arthritis. Other symptoms may include redness, warmth, swelling, and decreased range of motion of the affected joints. In some types of arthritis, other organs are also affected. Onset can be gradual or sudden.

Arthritis is the most common cause of disability in the United States. More than 20 million individuals with arthritis have severe limitations in function on a daily basis.

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Are lab test results always right?

While they do have to meet very high standards, they can be wrong sometimes. For example, you might get a false positive (the results say you have the condition you were tested for, but you really dont) or a false negative (the results say you don’t have a condition, but you really do).

Lab test failures contribute to delayed or wrong diagnoses and unnecessary costs and care. For context, a 2014 study estimated that diagnostic errors happen about 12 million times per year in U.S. outpatients. This represents 1 in 20 adults. In case you think your blood test result doesn't make any sense, we recommend that you do the test again from HealthLabs as they perform testing using verified methods and they test blood only in the best CLIA certified labs. You won't need a doctor's referral or insurance.

Find A Lab Near You

Besides Lab test failures, there are many other reasons for inaccurate blood results. Know the common reasons for inaccurate blood test results?

Important note :

Please keep notes of the symptoms you are experiencing. These notes can help your doctor identify high ferritin impact on your body. Keep the notes till the time you experience symptoms of high ferritin and also keep a record of the following:

1. Medications used for high ferritin.
2. The duration of symptoms.
3. The intensity of the headache, if any.
4. Fever logs and duration of the fever.
5. The date you experienced high ferritin symptoms for the first time.
6. Side effects of the medicine you are experiencing, if any.
7. The duration of the disease.