Iron overload in cardiac valvular disease and pure red cell aplasia: treatment with desferrioxamine

A patient was noted to have mitral stenosis in 1969, which by 1982 had progressed to grade III severity. In 1980 she was found to have pure red cell aplasia which was treated by transfusion. In this report we describe the control of iron overload using desferrioxamine and discuss the role of this drug in the treatment of hemosiderosis.