Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2008 Oct;45(4):210-7.
doi: 10.1053/j.seminhematol.2008.06.006.

Epidemiology of anemia in older adults

Kushang V Patel  1
Affiliations
Review

Epidemiology of anemia in older adults

Kushang V Patel. Semin Hematol. 2008 Oct.

Abstract

Anemia is a common, multifactorial condition among older adults. The World Health Organization (WHO) definition of anemia (hemoglobin concentration <12 g/dL in women and <13 g/dL in men) is most often used in epidemiologic studies of older adults. More than 10% of community-dwelling adults age 65 years and older has WHO-defined anemia. After age 50 years, prevalence of anemia increases with advancing age and exceeds 20% in those 85 years and older. In nursing homes, anemia is present in 48% to 63% of residents. Incidence of anemia in older adults is not well characterized. Among older adults with anemia, approximately one third have evidence of iron, folate, and/or vitamin B(12) deficiency, another third have renal insufficiency and/or chronic inflammation, and the remaining third have anemia that is unexplained. Several studies demonstrate that anemia is associated with poorer survival in older adults. This review details the distribution and consequences of anemia in older adults and identifies future epidemiologic research needs.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Percent of persons anemic according to age and sex*
NHANES III, Phases I and II, 1988–94. *Note: This research was originally published in Blood. Guralnik JM, Eisenstaedt RS, Ferrucci L, Klein HG, Woodman RC. Prevalence of anemia in persons 65 years and older in the United States: evidence for a high rate of unexplained anemia. Blood. 2004;104:2263–2268. © The American Society of Hematology.10
Figure 2
Figure 2. Distribution of hemoglobin in persons 65 years and older according to sex*
NHANES III, Phases I and II, 1988 to 1994 *Note: This research was originally published in Blood. Guralnik JM, Eisenstaedt RS, Ferrucci L, Klein HG, Woodman RC. Prevalence of anemia in persons 65 years and older in the United States: evidence for a high rate of unexplained anemia. Blood. 2004;104:2263–2268. © The American Society of Hematology.10
Figure 3
Figure 3. Distribution of hemoglobin in persons 65 years and older according to race/ethnicity*
NHANES III, Phases I and II, 1988 to 1994 *Note: Author’s analysis of NHANES III data.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Association between hemoglobin and risk for all-cause mortality**
(A) Women. (B) Men. Each ● indicates a point estimate for this risk, and the vertical lines represent 95% confidence intervals around these estimates. *Adjusted for age, diabetes mellitus, GFR, and comorbidity **Note: This research was originally published in Blood. Culleton BF, Manns BJ, Zhang J, Tonelli M, Klarenbach S, Hemmelgarn BR. Impact of anemia on hospitalization and mortality in older adults. Blood. 2006;107:3841–3846. © The American Society of Hematology.4
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Population Division: World Population Prospects. The 2006 Revision. New York: United Nations; 2007.
    1. Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics. Older Americans Update 2008: Key Indicators of Well-Being. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office; 2008.
    1. Chaves PH, Xue QL, Guralnik JM, Ferrucci L, Volpato S, Fried LP. What constitutes normal hemoglobin concentration in community-dwelling disabled older women? J Am Geriatr Soc. 2004;52:1811–1816. - PubMed
    1. Culleton BF, Manns BJ, Zhang J, Tonelli M, Klarenbach S, Hemmelgarn BR. Impact of anemia on hospitalization and mortality in older adults. Blood. 2006;107:3841–3846. - PubMed
    1. Denny SD, Kuchibhatla MN, Cohen HJ. Impact of anemia on mortality, cognition, and function in community-dwelling elderly. Am J Med. 2006;119:327–334. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms