Serum ferritin and iron uptake by peripheral blood leucocytes in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease in which anaemia is common. The origin of the anaemia is usually multifactorial. Iron deficiency, a defect of release of iron from the reticulo-endothelial system is discussed. Ferritin content of monocytes, lymphocytes and polymorphs is found altered and mostly elevated in monocytes affected by serum iron deficiency. In all cell types iron uptake is related to transferrin saturation. Alterations against normal subjects in iron uptake, ferritin synthesis and iron incorporation into ferritin are mostly found in patients with serum iron deficiency.