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Other Blood Diseases |
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Hemolytic Anemia
 Signs and Symptoms
Diagnosis
Treatment
Signs and Symptoms Hemolytic anemia is a term used for a variety of anemias characterized by a low count of red blood cells. Red blood cells are produced by stem cells in bone marrow. They contain hemoglobin, a protein that carries oxygen in the blood stream throughout the body. Hemolytic anemia occurs when red blood cells have an abnormally short life span. They're destroyed faster than bone marrow can produce them. The term for destruction of red blood cells is "hemolysis." Symptoms of hemolytic anemia may vary with each child.
The following are some of the most common symptoms:
- Abnormally pale skin as well as jaundice or yellowing of skin and eyes
- Confusion
- Dark colored urine
- Dizziness, weakness or intolerance to physical activity
- Enlarged spleen and liver
- Fever
- Heart murmur
- Increased heart rate
These symptoms may be similar to other blood conditions and medical problems. Your child's doctors will conduct several tests to diagnose the disease.
There are more than a dozen conditions characterized by hemolytic anemia. Certain forms of hemolytic anemia are "inherited" or "congenital," such as sickle cell anemia or thalassemia. Others are "acquired" and can be triggered by certain drugs, infections or other environmental exposures.
Congenital: In "congenital" hemolytic anemias, the destruction of red blood cells is caused by a defect within the red blood cells themselves. These anemias often are inherited, such as sickle cell anemia and thalassemia, and produce red blood cells that do not live as long as normal red blood cells.
Acquired: In "acquired" hemolytic anemias, also called autoimmune hemolytic anemias or Coombs positive hemolytic anemias, a child's red blood cells are produced as healthy cells but later destroyed after being trapped in the spleen, by infection or by drugs. These forms of anemia are frequently associated with other medical conditions, such as an autoimmune disorder, a disease that causes the immune system to mistakenly attack itself, targeting the cells, tissues and organs of your child's body. But acquired anemia may occur by themselves.
The following are some of the common causes of these anemias:
- Infections, such as hepatitis, cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), typhoid fever, E. coli or streptococcus
- Drugs such as penicillin, antimalaria medications, sulfa medications or acetaminophen
- Leukemia or lymphoma
- Autoimmune disorders, such as systemic lupus erythematous (SLE, or lupus), rheumatoid arthritis, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, or ulcerative colitis
- Tumors
Some types of acquired hemolytic anemia are temporary and resolve over several months. Other types can become chronic with periods of remissions and recurrence.
Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Children's Hospital.
Last updated May 8, 2007
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