The symptoms are linked to iron deposits on various organs such as the skin, heart, endocrine glands and liver.

Evolution of disease symptoms

– Between 0 and 20 years, iron gradually accumulates in the body without causing symptoms.

– Between 20 and 40 years, an iron overload appears which still does not give symptoms.

– Around the middle of the fourth decade in men (and later in women), the first clinical signs of the disease appear: fatigue permanent joint pain (small joints of the fingers, wrists or hips), browning of the skin (melanoderma), “grayish, metallic” appearance of the skin on the face, large joints and genitals, skin atrophy (the skin becomes thinner), scaly or fish scale appearance (this is what the called ichthyosis) of the skin and thinning of hair and pubic hair

– When the diagnosis of the disease has not been made, complications appear affecting the liver, heart and endocrine glands.

Liver damage : on clinical examination, the doctor may notice an increase in the size of the liver, responsible for abdominal pain. Cirrhosis and the onset of liver cancer are the most serious complications of the disease.

Endocrine gland involvement : the course of the disease can be marked by the occurrence of diabetes (damage to the pancreas) and impotence in men (damage to the testicles).

Heart damage : The deposit of iron on the heart is responsible for an increase in its volume and signs of heart failure.

Thus, if the disease is diagnosed only at a late stage (cases remaining exceptional today), it is possible to observe the association of heart failure, diabetes and cirrhosis of the liver. and a brownish discoloration of the skin.

The earlier the disease is diagnosed (before the age of 40), the better the response to treatment and the favorable prognosis of the disease.. On the other hand, when the complications described above appear, they regress little under treatment. If the patient is treated before the onset of cirrhosis, their life expectancy is identical to that of the general population.