Primary pulmonary hemosiderosis-a rare cuase of Microcytic hypochromic anemia

Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is the most common cause of anemia in children. In develop-ing countries, the underlying nutritional deprivation makesIDA the most commonly diag-nosed condition and empirical iron supplementation is more or less a norm. Peripheral blood smear picture of microcytic, hypochromic anemia gives an appropriate lead. How-ever, failure of iron therapy and exclusion of its common causes prompts us to look at other diagnostic possibilities. Idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis is one such rare condition. We report a two-year female child with persistent microcytic hypochromic anemia with recur-rent hospitalizations for respiratory symptoms not attributable to anemia. The purpose of this paper is to create awareness about Idiopathic Pulmonary Hemosiderosis as a possible but rare cause of microcytic, hypochromic anemia associated with respiratory distress and to delineate diagnostic difficulties and possible pitfalls.