What does it mean if my transferrin saturation is high?

What does it mean if my transferrin saturation is high?

A high transferrin saturation results indicates you have too much iron in your body. In iron overload, the transferrin saturation is usually increased from around 30% to over 90%. Potential causes include excessive intake, possibly from iron supplements or multivitamins.

Is high transferrin saturation dangerous?

The current study indicates that persons with a serum transferrin saturation greater than 55% are at increased risk of all-cause mortality.

What causes elevated transferrin levels?

The most common cause of high transferrin levels is iron deficiency [8, 9, 10]. Work with your doctor or another health care professional to get an accurate diagnosis. Your doctor will interpret your result, taking into account your medical history, symptoms, and other test results.

What causes high iron percent saturation?

Abnormally high iron serum levels may mean you’ve consumed too much iron, vitamin B-6, or vitamin B-12. High levels of iron may indicate: hemolytic anemia or hemolysis: your body doesn’t have enough healthy red blood cells. liver conditions: such as hepatic necrosis (liver failure) and hepatitis.

Is high transferrin bad?

Although few individuals have diagnosed iron overload conditions, such as hemochromatosis, the prevalence of elevated serum transferrin saturation ranges from 1% to 6% of the adult US population. Recent data suggest that elevated serum transferrin saturation carries an increased overall mortality risk.

What does 15 iron saturation mean?

For instance, a value of 15% means that 15% of iron-binding sites of transferrin are being occupied by iron. The three results are usually reported together. A low transferrin saturation is a common indicator of iron deficiency anemia whereas a high transferrin saturation may indicate iron overload or hemochromatosis.

Is iron saturation and transferrin saturation the same?

The terms transferrin saturation and iron-binding capacity, saturation, are interchangeable; however, this value is now most commonly referred to simply as transferrin saturation. This minimizes confusion with another value, iron-binding capacity, which is used when determining a patient’s iron status.

What does a low transferrin saturation mean?

Low levels of transferrin saturation ratio generally indicate iron deficiency, while high levels;-traditionally > 50% indicate an excess of iron, which can be detrimental to health.

What causes elevated iron saturation?

Elevated Total Iron Binding Capacity will automatically result in low free iron in the blood. Hence if with elevated TIBC, iron too is high, it could be due to iron supplements you took. Another possibility is hereditary hemochromatosis.

What is the normal range for iron saturation?

A normal range for iron in the blood, as reported by MedlinePlus, is 60mcg/dL to 170 mcg/dL4. A TIBC test helps determine whether the blood carries too little or too much iron.

What is a normal transferrin level?

The normal range for transferrin is 170 to 370 mg/dl. If you have a higher amount, you may have iron-deficiency anemia. If you have a lower level, you may have another problem, such as liver disease and hemolytic anemia. Transferrin may also be measured using a value called total iron-binding capacity (TIBC).