A 25-year-old male presents with fatigue and pallor. His complete blood count shows hemoglobin of 9 g/dL and MCV of 80 fL. What could be the potential causes, and what are the next steps?
This patient's presentation of fatigue and pallor along with a low hemoglobin and normal MCV suggest a normocytic anemia. This could be due to a number of causes such as acute blood loss, hemolysis, or chronic disease. The next step would be to assess his reticulocyte count, check iron studies, and possibly perform other tests such as serum creatinine and inflammatory markers to identify the cause of anemia.