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Complications
By Mayo Clinic staffUntreated, hereditary hemochromatosis can lead to a number of complications, especially in your joints and in organs where excess iron tends to be stored — your liver, pancreas and heart. Many of these complications are serious and some may be life-threatening:
- Cirrhosis. Because your liver is a primary storage area for excess iron, it's especially likely to be damaged by long-term iron overload. Cirrhosis — permanent scarring of the liver — is just one of the problems that may occur. Cirrhosis itself may lead to serious complications, including bleeding from dilated veins in your esophagus and stomach (varices) and severe fluid retention in your abdomen (ascites). Toxins that accumulate in your blood can affect your mental functioning, leading to confusion and even coma (hepatic encephalopathy). A number of factors other than hereditary hemochromatosis also can cause cirrhosis — the most common are long-term alcohol abuse and chronic hepatitis.
- Liver cancer. If you have both cirrhosis and hereditary hemochromatosis, your risk of liver cancer increases greatly. Because liver cancer must be diagnosed and treated early for the best outcome, your doctor will likely monitor you for any liver problems.
- Diabetes. This disease affects the way your body uses blood sugar (glucose). Diabetes is the leading cause of adult-onset blindness and can contribute to serious health problems such as kidney failure and cardiovascular disease.
- Congestive heart failure. This potentially life-threatening condition may occur when excess iron in your heart interferes with its ability to circulate enough blood to meet your body's needs. Untreated congestive heart failure can be fatal, but the condition may be reversible when hereditary hemochromatosis is treated and excess iron stores reduced.
- Heart arrhythmias. Abnormal heart rhythms can cause heart palpitations, chest pain and lightheadedness. In some cases, they may be life-threatening. Like congestive heart failure, arrhythmias can often be reversed with treatment for hereditary hemochromatosis.
- Pigment changes. Deposits of iron in skin cells can turn your skin a bronze or gray color.
