Serum Iron level in Alzheimer

Alzheimer disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder manifested by memory lost and other cognitive dysfunctions. Its neuropathological characteristics include presence of neurofibrillary tangles and senile plaques. It has been hypothesized that the stored metals might be the key to the damage. One of these suspected elements is iron. This study aimed at evaluating the serum ferrous level in a group of patients with AD. In a one year case-control study, a group of patients with definite diagnosis of Alzheimer disease were evaluated by Global Deterioration Scale (GDS) for their disease severity, the serum ferrous level also has been measured by atomic absorption method in each individuals. We also measure the serum ferrous level in a group of controls. The serum ferrous level was compared between the case and the control groups, and also its relation with disease severity was assessed. Fifty patients, (26 / 24 M / F mean age of 71.34±6.69) and 50 healthy persons, (17/33 M / F mean age of 68.96±6.39).The serum ferrous level was 0.41±0.16 ppm and 0.46±0.20 ppm, respectively (P=0.229).There was no significant correlation between the serum ferrous level and the severity of Alzheimer disease (r=0.186, P =0.195). The current study showed that there is no significant difference between patients with Alzheimer disease and healthy controls in terms of the serum ferrous level.