Emmily A., 16

Emily is a jovial and energetic young girl who is devout and religious. She dreams of joining a convent and becoming a nun after finishing school. In her free time, she enjoys teaching Sunday School, playing dodgeball with her friends, and helping her mother at home. Since 2021, Emily has not been in perfect health. She frequently feels lethargic and fatigued during physical activities. Despite multiple visits to the hospital, she has not fully recovered. Recently, she started experiencing severe headaches, nosebleeds every two days, and chest pains. Concerned about these symptoms, her mother decided to bring her to the hospital for further evaluation. Emily's symptoms suggest a serious underlying health condition that requires thorough medical investigation. Persistent fatigue, frequent nosebleeds, and chest pains can be indicative of various issues, including anemia, blood disorders, or cardiovascular problems. It is crucial to conduct comprehensive diagnostic tests to identify the root cause and provide appropriate treatment to improve Emily's health and well-being.

Emilly presented with frequent nose bleeds , and fatigue. Tests revealed low blood cells count which warranted an admission, where she was transfused blood, on doing another full hemoglobin test her test revealed a count of 3 which was quite low, and therefore she stayed admitted for a period of over 2 weeks. During this duration she was transfused 6 pints of blood but she continued being anemic. After the last transfusion she stayed for 2 weeks before being taken for a bone marrow aspirator BMA test, she was temporarily discharged on TABS BEECLAV 1GM [amoxictav] 1g BD 1/52 TABS PARACETAMOL sOOMGS 1g tds 3/7 TABS SAFERON PLUS CHEWABLE 1 tab OD 1/12 awaiting results of the BMA test The BMA test was not significant, but luckily Emilly progressed well and is now doing well She is however on constant follow up every 3 months for routine blood tests

The first step is to identify the cause of the severe anaemia, which in this case, was never known, but there is joy in the fact that if treated symptomatically, the anaemia resolves. If left untreated, anemia can lead to fatigue, weakness, paleness, shortness of breath, reduced overall quality of life and eventually death. In severe cases, untreated anaemia can result in complications such as heart problems, impaired cognitive function, and compromised immune response, underscoring the importance of timely diagnosis and treatment to prevent these health issues.