Symptoms
Taken from the Mayo Clinic Website:
Signs and symptoms include:
- Arthritis, especially in your hands
- Chronic fatigue
- Loss of sex drive (libido) or impotence
- Lack of normal menstruation (amenorrhea)
- Abdominal pain
- High blood sugar levels
- Low thyroid function (hypothyroidism)
- Abnormal liver function tests, even if no other symptoms are present
In advanced stages of the disease, you may develop serious conditions such as:
- Cirrhosis — a condition marked by irreversible scarring of the liver
- Liver failure
- Liver cancer
- Diabetes
- Congestive heart failure
- Cardiac arrhythmia
Some people with advanced hemochromatosis develop a bronze color to their skin when iron deposits in the skin cells produce excess melanin — the pigment that gives skin its normal color. Visible iron deposits can also make skin appear gray.
