Table 2. Interpreting iron profile results according to aetiology and severity .

Anaemia of chronic disease		Iron deficiency without anaemia		Severe iron deficiency with anaemia
Serum iron	↓		↓		↓
Serum transferrin or serum total iron binding capacity	↓ or low normal		↑ or high normal		↑
Serum transferrin saturation (%)	↓		↓		↓
Serum ferritin	↑ or high normal		↓		↓
Blood film	Normal		Normal		Hypochromia and microcytosis