[Chronic occult gastrointestinal hemorrhage]

Abstract

Iron deficiency anemia is a common symptom of chronic occult gastrointestinal bleeding. There are numerous potential sources of gastrointestinal hemorrhage, most of which can be detected with the aid of endoscopy of the upper and lower digestive tract. Diagnostic procedures for the small bowel are less sensitive and usually more invasive. On the basis of the relevance of information they provide, the various diagnostic procedures and their indication in the diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia are critically reviewed, and a systematic diagnostic strategy developed.