There are several methods available for diagnosing and monitoring<unk>  including: * Serum ferritin * Liver biopsy * MRI Serum ferritin is a low cost, readily available, and minimally invasive method for assessing body iron stores. However, the major problem with using it as an indicator of<unk>  is that it can be elevated in a range of other medical conditions unrelated to iron levels including infection, inflammation, fever, liver disease, renal disease and cancer. While liver biopsies provide a direct measure of liver iron concentration, the small sample size relative to the size of the liver can lead to sampling errors given the heterogeneity of iron concentration within the liver. Furthermore, the invasive nature of liver biopsy and the associated risks of complications (which can range from pain, haemorrhage, gallbladder perforation and other morbidities through to death in approx 1 in 10,000 cases) prevent it being used as a regular monitoring tool. MRI is emerging as an alternative method for measuring liver iron loading because it is non-invasive, safer and generally cheaper to perform than liver biopsy; does not suffer from problems with sampling variability; and can be used more frequently than performing liver biopsies.
Hemosiderosis
Hemosiderin hyperpigmentation
Hemosiderin
Iron metallic discoloration
Iron overload
Hemosiderinuria
Iron lung
Venetian ceruse