Topic: Mysterious Iron: From Biology to the Bedside

Objective(s):

• Describe the biological regulation of iron metabolism, including iron trafficking, sequestration, and the role of inflammation in shaping systemic iron availability. 
• Differentiate between nutritional iron deficiency, anemia of inflammation, and mixed iron states, and recognize the limitations of conventional iron biomarkers (e.g., ferritin, TSAT) in complex disease states. 
• Apply a biologically informed framework to clinical decision-making about iron therapy, recognizing contexts in which iron supplementation may have limited efficacy or unintended systemic consequences.

Speaker(s): Dr. Oleh Akchurin