Men: 20 - 250 ng/ml
Women not on menopause: 12 - 150 ng/ml
Women on menopause 12 - 250 ng/ml
Children from 6 months to 5 years old: 7 - 142 ng/ml
Children from 2 months to 5 months old: 50 - 500 ng/ml
Newborns: 25 - 200 ng/ml
In the International System of Units (SI), iron in the blood is measured in µg/L. The numeric values in the SI are the same as shown above.
Each laboratory must establish its own normal ranges for ferritin in the blood. These ranges depend on the makeup of the local population, the technologies used and the accuracy of the measurement. There may be also slight differences in the normal levels according to age, gender, race or ethnic origin, geographic region, diet, type of sample and other relevant status.
Your doctor will study the results along with your medical record, screenings, physical condition, symptoms and any other relevant information about your situation.
In women, there are big differences in the ferritin normal range before and after menopause. Women on menopause has a normal range with a limit of 250 ng/ml. Women before menopause in contrast, has a normal range limit of about 150 ng/ml.
Children under one year old may have a ferritin level of 500 ng/ml in the normal range.
Ferritin is a protein that stores iron. Free iron is toxic for the body. For that reason, the storage of iron is made through the proteins ferritin and hemosiderin.
The ferritin level is an excellent way to know the body's iron stores.
Ferritin plays a key role in the production of red blood cells.
Ferritin can be found mainly in the liver and in small amounts in the bone marrow, spleen and muscles.
A small amount is present in the blood. Although the ferritin in the blood is found in low concentration is a good estimation to determine the total iron stored in the body. It is estimated that for every g/ml of ferritin in the blood correlates with 10 mg of stored iron.
The ferritin blood test is performed along other blood assays to study a possible anemia. If anemia is present, the red blood cell formation will be compromised.
The other parameters to study the possibility of suffering from anemia include iron in the blood, transferrin, TIBC (Total Iron Binding Capacity), transferrin saturation and other hematology parameters (hemoglobin, red blood count, hematocrit, etc…)
A high ferritin level in the blood may suggest hemochromatosis or iron overload. In some cases, it can be a consequence of infectious diseases, inflammatory diseases, liver disorders or rheumatoid arthritis.
A low ferritin level in the blood may be a sign of iron deficiencyanemia. The most interesting thing about ferritin is that it can predict the iron deficiencyanemia before it appears.
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The following values are considered to be normal values:
IMPORTANT: These levels are expressed in ng/dL. They are an example of a healthy woman of about 35 years old, not on menopause, with a balanced diet, not known disease and not taking any medication. The ranges can be different depending on the laboratory or on your personal circumstances.
Ferritin | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Normality | |||||||
| 12 ng/ml | 14 ng/ml | 16 ng/ml | 18 ng/ml | 20 ng/ml | 22 ng/ml | 24 ng/ml | 26 ng/ml |
| 28 ng/ml | 30 ng/ml | 32 ng/ml | 34 ng/ml | 36 ng/ml | 38 ng/ml | 40 ng/ml | 42 ng/ml |
| 44 ng/ml | 46 ng/ml | 48 ng/ml | 50 ng/ml | 52 ng/ml | 54 ng/ml | 56 ng/ml | 58 ng/ml |
| 60 ng/ml | 62 ng/ml | 64 ng/ml | 66 ng/ml | 68 ng/ml | 70 ng/ml | 72 ng/ml | 74 ng/ml |
| 76 ng/ml | 78 ng/ml | 80 ng/ml | 82 ng/ml | 84 ng/ml | 86 ng/ml | 88 ng/ml | 90 ng/ml |
| 92 ng/ml | 94 ng/ml | 96 ng/ml | 98 ng/ml | 100 ng/ml | 102 ng/ml | 104 ng/ml | 106 ng/ml |
| 108 ng/ml | 110 ng/ml | 112 ng/ml | 114 ng/ml | 116 ng/ml | 118 ng/ml | 120 ng/ml | 122 ng/ml |
| 124 ng/ml | 126 ng/ml | 128 ng/ml | 130 ng/ml | 132 ng/ml | 134 ng/ml | 136 ng/ml | 138 ng/ml |
| 140 ng/ml | 142 ng/ml | 144 ng/ml | 146 ng/ml | 148 ng/ml | 150 ng/ml | ||