Biomaterial Database

Desiderosmia: a manifestation of iron deficiency in pregnancy. 2022

Katrina Harris, and Allison Mo, and Kiran Atmuri

Women's Health Unit, Peninsula Health, Frankston, Victoria, Australia harriskatrin@gmail.com.

A pregnant woman in her 20s presented with an excessive desire to smell a specific household cleaning product. She was found to have severe iron deficiency anaemia and her symptoms resolved following intravenous iron supplementation. She described symptoms of fatigue, shortness of breath and olfactory cravings. The specific scent could not be replicated with other smells and the woman had to significantly modify her lifestyle to accommodate the excessive desire. She had a similar experience during her prior pregnancy which resolved after the correction of severe iron deficiency anaemia. This unique symptom has been described as desiderosmia: iron deficiency manifesting as olfactory cravings. This underappreciated but useful symptom is defined as a separate entity to pica, as there is an absence of desire to ingest the product. Desiderosmia can harm mother and baby through inhalation of potentially harmful fumes; hence, women who describe this symptom should be assessed for iron deficiency anaemia.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007501	Iron	A metallic element with atomic symbol Fe, atomic number 26, and atomic weight 55.85. It is an essential constituent of HEMOGLOBINS; CYTOCHROMES; and IRON-BINDING PROTEINS. It plays a role in cellular redox reactions and in the transport of OXYGEN.	Iron-56,Iron 56
D010842	Pica	The persistent eating of non-nutritive substances for a period of at least one month.	Geophagia,Allotriophagy
D011247	Pregnancy	The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH.	Gestation,Pregnancies
D011250	Pregnancy Complications, Hematologic	The co-occurrence of pregnancy and a blood disease (HEMATOLOGIC DISEASES) which involves BLOOD CELLS or COAGULATION FACTORS. The hematologic disease may precede or follow FERTILIZATION and it may or may not have a deleterious effect on the pregnant woman or FETUS.	Complications, Hematologic Pregnancy,Hematologic Pregnancy Complications,Pregnancy Complications, Hematological,Pregnancy, Hematologic Complications,Complication, Hematologic Pregnancy,Complication, Hematological Pregnancy,Complications, Hematological Pregnancy,Hematologic Pregnancy Complication,Hematological Pregnancy Complication,Hematological Pregnancy Complications,Pregnancies, Hematologic Complications,Pregnancy Complication, Hematologic,Pregnancy Complication, Hematological
D005260	Female		Females
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000090463	Iron Deficiencies	Deficient amounts of iron in the body as a result of blood loss, diets deficient in iron, or an iron uptake or storage disorder.	Hypoferritinemia,Iron Deficiency,Latent Iron Deficiency,Sideropenia,Deficiencies, Iron,Deficiencies, Latent Iron,Deficiency, Iron,Deficiency, Latent Iron,Hypoferritinemias,Iron Deficiencies, Latent,Iron Deficiency, Latent,Latent Iron Deficiencies,Sideropenias
D061605	Administration, Intravenous	Delivery of substances through VENIPUNCTURE into the VEINS.	Intravenous Administration,Administrations, Intravenous,Intravenous Administrations
D018798	Anemia, Iron-Deficiency	Anemia characterized by decreased or absent iron stores, low serum iron concentration, low transferrin saturation, and low hemoglobin concentration or hematocrit value. The erythrocytes are hypochromic and microcytic and the iron binding capacity is increased.	Iron-Deficiency Anemia,Anemias, Iron-Deficiency,Iron-Deficiency Anemias,Anemia, Iron Deficiency,Anemias, Iron Deficiency,Iron Deficiency Anemia,Iron Deficiency Anemias