Plasma ferritin in old age. Influence of biological and pathological factors in a large elderly population

The effects of biological (age, sex, weight) and pathological factors on plasma ferritin concentrations were documented in 776 unselected elderly patients aged 80.9 +/- 9.7 yr. A marked shift towards high values (159 +/- 142 micrograms/l) was observed in this elderly population together with the persistence of the well-known sex-related difference in ferritin levels (higher levels in men). Twenty-five percent of the population had high levels of ferritin (greater than or equal to 220 micrograms/l) but 75% of these high values (i.e. 18.5% of the population) could be readily explained by their known association with a particular pathology (inflammatory syndrome, renal failure, cardiovascular diseases, alcoholism). Only 6% of the population had unexplained high ferritin concentrations. Therefore, our data strongly suggest that the repeatedly reported increase of ferritin in the aged population is merely related to an age-associated pathology and may not be a normal physiological event occurring during the process of aging.