Table 2.

Laboratory assessment of iron status (adapted from reference [18]).

Clinical Setting	Laboratory Data	Diagnosis
Anemia and/or signs and symptoms suggestive of iron deficiency	Ferritin 30–300 ng/mL +TSAT > 20%	Iron repletion
	Ferritin < 30 ng/mL	Absolute iron deficiency
	Ferritin 30–100 ng/mL +TSAT < 20% or CRP > 5 mg/L
	Ferritin >100 ng/mL +TSAT < 20% or CRP > 5 mg/L	Functional iron deficiency (iron sequestration) *
Blood donation/pregnancy	Ferritin < 50 ng/mL +TSAT > 20%	Inadequate iron stores
Major surgery (Blood loss > 500 mL)	Ferritin <100 ng/mL +TSAT > 20%

CRP, C-reactive protein; TSAT, transferrin saturation. * See text for additional test requests.