text:
The Worst Bridezilla Stories Ever
Weddings can bring out the worst in people.
Viacheslav Boiko / Shutterstock
By Moneywise Aug. 16, 2022
facebook-f-brands twitter-brands envelope-light print-light
Summer wedding season is in full swing. Weddings can be fun, but they often cost a pretty penny: The average U.S. wedding is $38,000 according to WeddingWire's 2019 Newlywed Report.
The extreme financial pressure can turn relatively sane people into raging bride (and groom)-zillas. From cheating spouses and stingy friends to nosy mothers-in-law, here are some Reddit horror stories that talk about that not-so-special day.
Comments have been edited for grammar and clarity.
More: Planning your wedding? Get a personal loan quote from Credible
Educate your inbox.
Wise up with top stories and timely tips Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Champagne taste on a beer budget
Shutterstock / New Africa
I'm best friends with the groom but not as close with the bride. In the past year, I started becoming close with the bride. She asked me to be a bridesmaid, I got excited and said yes — not knowing how much it would be.
I was under the impression that because the bride and groom don't have much money, myself and our friends don't have much money, that the wedding events would not cost that much
The bride is really obsessed with fairy tales and princesses (which is really cute) but she wants the wedding and bridal shower/bachelorette party to be this huge fairytale that she can't afford. She planned the bridal shower herself but gave each of us roles.
She assigned one decor item and one food item to each of us — which is fine. But each "item" she wants is A LOT of money so the price is a little high for our budget. Everyone that knows her keeps saying she has champagne taste on a beer budget. I was thinking of telling her I can't afford all of that but this happened: her best friend chose desserts and pictures for the bridal shower.
She was thinking she could make cupcakes or something like that. But the bride texted her saying she wanted certain desserts and this would cost $400 alone. The girl said I can't afford to spend $400 on bridal shower desserts (because we still have a huge list of other things to buy).
The bride texted her back and said "I understand you work hard for your money and it's yours but you just got your nails done and bought a pet fish. I really thought you'd spend the next two months on my wedding and then go back to buying things you want after."
This is making me want to drop out of the wedding.
| Comfortable-Fig6874
Earn points for cash back and gift cards
Upload a picture of your shopping receipts to the free Fetch app, and start earning points today. Redeem your points for cash or gift cards.
No makeup allowed
Shutterstock / Dmitry Galaganov
My best friend is getting married this summer and she's been a bit of a bridezilla but I figured it has just been stressful having to cancel and reschedule her wedding and such with COVID. She ended up cutting people out of her wedding party and now it's just me and her maid of honor.
Since the wedding party is small she asked if we would be okay with doing our hair and makeup (yes). Except today she told me that she and her maid of honor were going to be getting their hair done at the salon and then having a makeup artist come in to do their makeup the day of. I'm pretty hurt, but I don't mind doing my own hair and makeup. To be honest I'd rather just do my own makeup since I don't like people touching my face.
After I mentioned that to her she replied to me with "well if it's okay with you, I'd rather you not wear makeup to the wedding since you will look way better than me if you do." I was shocked. I laughed because I thought she was joking but she said she was serious and told me I could wear mascara and that's all. She doesn't want me to "outshine her because I know you will" on her day.
This hurt a lot and put some other things into perspective for me such as her ordering me the wrong size dress and having it look like a potato sack on me and her saying "no you look great!" Or her intentionally leaving me out of getting my hair and makeup done. I feel really upset and I'm not sure what to tell her.
| universalstarseed
Pricey princess
Shutterstock / md-pictures
Me and my childhood bestie have always been friends and she got engaged five months ago to her boyfriend of six months. We've been planning our weddings since we were 14 and she always wanted a castle wedding with a ballgown.
Two months ago she found her dream castle in which she booked the wedding in four months. She just asked us for a $280 dress and for us to pay 1/10 of a $2000 wedding dress. There's six bridesmaids which is $200 plus a $14,000 bachelorette party — which is $2333.34 per person, plus a $600 bridal shower.
The total is $2,913.34 which I can't afford. I am still in university and finish a few months before the wedding but I am $100,000 in debt. I told her I can't pay for her wedding dress and bachelorette party — not even including the flight.
She wanted us to also pay for makeup and hair and wanted me to dye my hair dirty blonde. I am a redhead and can't dye it back. She also wants us to get her wedding gifts from the registry and pay for our own dinner.
I told her at this point I can't afford that and she freaked out saying I am an A-hole cause it's her big day and I helped her plan it at 14. I told her I am not in a financial situation to do this but I can try to work my butt off to afford it.
| erktx
Backup bridesmaid
Shutterstock / Kyryk Ivan
One of my boyfriend's best friends got engaged about a year ago. His fiance and I were pretty close. When the time came for her to ask people to be in her bridal party I was not asked and also not super off put by it — I understand that you can't have everyone. The part that upsets me is that she kept telling me if there is anyone in the bridal party that causes drama she will get rid of them and I can be the honorary bridesmaid.
Well fast forward about three months ago and I went out for supper with her and the maid of honor. They had been arguing about problems with the wedding for a while. Then they start drinking. This causes them to get emotional and the bride asks the maid of honor if she even wants to be part of the wedding, to which she replies yes.
So the bride is happy then, she turns to me and says "I know you're not a part of the wedding but if you want you can come hang out with us in the morning and get ready. You can also pay to get your hair and makeup done."
They continue to drink and get into a heated argument about how the bride wants her there but the maid of honor doesn't want to be there. I'm just sitting there watching it all play out.
Any time I have hung out with her since then all she talks about is the drama in the bridal party and honestly it feels like a chore to hangout with her when I used to genuinely enjoy it. Two weeks ago she asked the maid of honor to leave the bridal party because of the drama and now I am being asked to be the "honorary bridesmaid." I honestly feel like this is the same as being chosen last in gym class.
| graphixgurl747
Something blue, something stolen
Shutterstock / elitravo
My friend, we'll call her Mary, got married last week and I was in her bridal party.
I was supposed to attend the wedding with my own fiancé but he contracted COVID five days before we were supposed to leave and made the choice to stay home for everyone's safety. Our 5th anniversary of our first date was two months ago and he got me a beautiful opal necklace on a gold chain specifically to wear to the wedding because it complimented my bridesmaid dress.
I asked Mary in our bridal party group chat if she was alright with us wearing our own jewelry to the wedding, she said no problem. Day of the wedding comes, all of us bridesmaids and Mary meet early in the morning for pictures outside the chapel. Mary sees my necklace and loves it and actually asked if she could switch her necklace with mine.
Some other bridesmaids chime in and say that it would be her "something borrowed." I tried as politely as I could to tell her that my fiancé got this for me to wear to the wedding and especially since he can't be here, I'd like to keep it on.
Mary and the other bridesmaids were persistent, saying it was her wedding and her pictures and I wasn't being accommodating, but I firmly told them no. Mary then said if I could at least take it off since it looked nicer than her own jewelry.
Again, I told her I'd rather not. She was not happy, neither were the bridesmaids. I received a lot of cold shoulders and dirty looks at the ceremony and reception. After the first dance, Mary's sister came up to me to tell me just how upset Mary was and how rude it was that I upset her on her big day.
| BlueRoses95
Shallow bridezilla
Shutterstock / frantic00
I am a 27-year-old woman and my fiance Emily and I have been engaged for the last two months. Everyone important knows about us and is happy for us to be finally engaged. At least that's what I thought. Emily has been battling cancer the last few months and because of chemo, is bald. She has really bad self-esteem and confidence because of it (among other things) and hasn't really left the house since finding out about her diagnosis.
A mutual friend of ours was engaged when Emily found out about her diagnosis and was originally asked to be a maid of honor but now that she's bald was asked "to wear a wig to cover her bald head" because it didn't suit her style of photography for her wedding.
Emily came home crying after looking for bridesmaid dresses after she was demanded which wigs to wear by the bride and told me she felt uncomfortable about attending the wedding. I felt like this was rude and said to the bride that Emily was uncomfortable with her treatment and her reply back was that "she felt uncomfortable about a bald bridesmaid and that if she didn't wear the wig she wasn't allowed to attend the wedding.
I told her that we both wouldn't be attending, but now we have left her two bridesmaids short a week before the wedding.
| Anonymous
Blindsided with a blind date
My friend Mary and I have known each other since we were children. We've grown apart over the past few years but she still considers me important enough to make me a bridesmaid.
One reason why I distanced myself from her was because of her treatment of my relationship. My boyfriend Jack and I have been together for 3 and ½ years. He's a wonderful person, and there is no doubt in my mind that this is the man I want to marry, but Mary is under the impression that Jack is "too good for me."
Jack comes from a very wealthy background — this is in stark contrast to my childhood. Jack's good looks and background have led Mary to believe that Jack deserves better than me. According to her, there's no way I could have pulled someone so attractive and rich.
Mary invited me for lunch with her fiancé and his friend Gary. He asked me why I was single, and I told him that I was in a happy committed relationship.
He was taken aback by my answer. He told me that Mary had set up a blind, double-date of sorts for the both of us. I was very confused. Luckily Gary wasn't upset and ended up making a few jokes about the whole ordeal.
I called Mary later on in the day and asked her a ton of questions about why she thought it was okay to do that. At first she tried to deny it, but then she tried to justify it by saying that "Gary is a man who's more in my league," and since he was also a groomsman we needed to get to know each other better.
I was shocked by her bluntness, so I just told her that I didn't want to be her bridesmaid anymore. Mary didn't take it well — trying to apologize and saying that it was a mistake. It's been a few days and her fiancé has been texting me, asking me to suck it up for the wedding.
| notreallyadoubledate
Sorry you can't make it
flickr / Karla
A few years ago a very close friend got engaged and wanted to throw a conventional engagement party for around 40-50 people. I was her bridesmaid and had a nice party room in my condo that I kindly offered to her for the party, plus all my help in decorating the place and paying the deposit fees.
While we were planning the date she said she wanted it in April. I told her that any day in April would be fine, except for one Saturday of the month that I would be away for work.
And all that she said was "yeah, it's such a shame that you can't go to my party." This happened in the very early stages of organizing the party, so it's not like she had hired caterers or any other services. At the time I was shocked with her answer but didn't say anything.
I thought that she was going to at least consider moving the party to the next weekend to have me there since it was happening at my home and there was literally no reason for her to choose that date. Yet she was willing to throw the party without her only bridesmaid there.
When I was paying for the $300 non refundable rental deposit fee for the party room they walked me through my responsibility as a host and I realized that I couldn't just have 50 unsupervised strangers using my party room without my presence there. I told her and after throwing a tantrum she moved the date one weekend up. | sudokueggs
The trouble with twins
Shutterstock / Maria Sbytova
My twin sister, May, and I are identical. At the end of our first year of college I was in a car accident and I ended up with a facial scar and major trauma.
I also got a physical, started working with a dietician to fix my diet and the smorgasbord of vitamin deficiencies it caused. I started working out with our older sister.
By the end of our first year of college, we had each gained about 30 lbs. By the end of the next year, I had lost half of it. I found a new beautician and she gave me long layers and I stopped spray tanning.
I live in a rural area and the internet isn't great. Things like Facetime just aren't options, and I can't post a lot of pictures on social media because of it. This is relevant because a big issue is that May didn't see me over the quarantine.
We talked on the phone a couple times a week, but it mostly revolved around her wedding planning (she got engaged before the COVID lockdown). I wasn't her maid of honor, so mostly I was being told decisions, not involved in the process. When it came to the bridesmaids' dresses, May sent our sister, sister-in-law and me a link and told us to get it in our size. May didn't see any of us until the start of the wedding.
She was livid. Apparently, she thought we would have stopped working out because of COVID or that we would have stopped when she announced her engagement, so we didn't upstage her. She was mad because I didn't try to hide my scar and didn't tan and thought it "would be implied."
She made several snide remarks before throwing a drunk temper tantrum at the reception, basically accusing us of trying to upstage her.
Going broke for the bride
Shutterstock / fizkes
I am the maid of honor for Julia's wedding.
Julia has always had selfish tendencies, but friends kept her grounded. She has always expected people to pay for her, but is frankly non-reciprocal when the tables are turned. Since moving to a new city and meeting her fiancé, it's been hard to manage her expectations.
Julia's fiancé is great, but he has enabled her selfishness because he is financially well off. To paint a picture, he pays for everything — $12k a month on rent, $10k a month on gifts, vacations and a $200k wedding.
They are having a destination wedding. I spoke with everyone about their budget for her bachelorette. Most said 1-3 days and $200-$500. I thought this was really generous. Myself and one other bridesmaid could max afford $1000.
Julia wants to go somewhere "epic" for her bachelorette for a week. When I priced out what she wanted, it was $2000-5000 per person. When I told Julia this was "too big of an ask" she cried, called me selfish and made comments like "I would do this for you!"
I explained that spending money is a big sacrifice because we don't have the same financial freedom as her and we would not expect our loved ones to take a financial risk for our benefit. This was met with spite.
Now I'm being called out for being cheap and not supporting her special moment — I'm stunned at how everyone is behaving.
Is it really fair to expect others to spend that much for wedding events? Is it fair to expect a maid of honor to pay for other people's costs to meet the bride's expectations? Am I missing something?
| ThrowItAway7199
The Great Gatsby: bride edition
Shutterstock / Thanakorn.P
My best friend since the day I was born is finally getting married. This past summer she asked me to be part of her wedding as a bridesmaid.
We had a dress try on party which was exciting and expected but found out the only type of dress she wanted would be over $200. This was the first time we were all expected to bring gifts for the occasion and throw a party for the bride which we were all happy to do.
At the party she decided to tell us all that we will also be required to pay for hair and make-up if we want it and find a specific shoe for the big day. Not a big deal but wondering what she will be chipping in for.
Now moving on to the bridal showers — bridesmaids are expected to provide all the liquor for a 300 person event, come a day in advance to make all the party decorations and provide a gift off the registry for the shower.
Last but not least the bachelorette parties. We are expected to spend $1,000 just to attend the events. This is not including food and drinks. The second party will be more low key at her parents house for the people that aren't invited to the first one. We are expected to get at least one registry gift for this event. Plus, can't forget we need to get one more registry gift for the wedding!
I am feeling a little put out for this wedding cost wise as we are all in our 20's and two bridesmaids just turned 18. I have mentioned things are getting a bit over the top but as she and her parents are fairly wealthy she doesn't see how this could be seen as expensive. It's honestly stressing me out that my friend would think this is normal to spend all this.
| tryndye-1
Replaceable bridesmaid
Shutterstock / Ana Iacob Photography
I was thinking about bridezillas and I was reminded of an experience a friend of mine, we will call her Daphne, had with a bridezilla, who we will call Tara.
Daphne and Tara had been friends since they were young. They lived about an hour apart, attended the same church, talked frequently on the phone and got together for sleepovers. As they got older, Tara's family stopped attending church but Daphne and Tara still talked occasionally.
Daphne got married and due to her husband's inability to pick among his friends, ended up with a larger complementary bridal party which included Tara. Tara bought the dress Daphne selected (a modest red dress with cap sleeves for less than $80) and Daphne bought her jewelry. Tara already had shoes to wear. All went well.
Fast forward a year. Tara asks Daphne to be in her wedding party. Daphne reluctantly agrees. Tara selects a form fitting strapless bridesmaid dress for her party. Daphne is mortified as she is overweight and the dress is very unflattering. Tara brushes her concerns aside and pushes on. Daphne reluctantly bought the $200+ dress, leaving it with Tara.
Months before the wedding, Daphne finds out she is pregnant. She will be almost six months pregnant when the wedding is scheduled to take place. She contacts Tara and asks to be removed from the bridal party. Her dress would be too small, and she had been feeling uncomfortable in the dress anyway.
Tara was enraged, but she quickly found a substitute bridesmaid. Daphne was relieved and asked about repayment for the dress — Tara refused.
Ultimately, Daphne was never paid back for the dress that her replacement wore. She ended up not attending the wedding. Daphne did not speak to Tara for years after this.
| Vindwyn
Shutterstock / Sayuri Inoue
I'm the maid of honor at one of my best friend's weddings coming up this spring. I love her like a sister and it is an honor to be a part of her special day. However, the costs she expects me to cover are really adding up.
The costs include — bridesmaid dress ($250), alterations costs ($200) and shoes ($50). The bachelorette also had some specific requests — it is two hours away from where we live and she wanted a two night stay. My cost is going to be around $500. She also requested that I host the bridal shower for about 35 people and wanted a few things like a mimosa bar and some fancy treats.
Roughly this will cost $350 or more potentially. We also need to cover the costs for our hair and makeup which is $250. So in total I will be spending $1,850. That doesn't include the two gifts either — one for the bridal shower and the other for the wedding.
We are both financially stable, but I feel really stressed about the costs. I definitely expected to pay for certain things like the bachelorette and my dress, but when she asked me I had no idea she was expecting us to spend this much on everything.
| Comfortable_Desk_138
The last straw
Shutterstock / EvgeniiAnd
I have been friends with the bride for more than 15 years. But in the last four years I have been feeling disconnected from her. We have such different hobbies, interests and friends. Most of the time, she is not able to relate to any of my interests and she barely listens and ignores what I say.
When she got engaged, it made me extremely happy and I boasted about it everywhere. They started to plan their wedding and I was the one who was expected to help them and be the main bridesmaid. I was happy to help — I didn't mind staying up late after midnight to be on the phone with her and help them choose a dream destination.
Day by day, she voiced ridiculous requests that made me feel really uncomfortable. The wedding place must have a big dining room for 150 people and cannot be separated because everybody must be able to hear the speeches and cry.
She got mad at one of her friends because she hesitated on going to Thailand for her bachelorette party due to her job and the upcoming peak season. I wasn't thrilled either, because I know not everyone would be able to go due to each one's financial, occupational or family reasons.
I tried to be diplomatic and persuade her that we can have it as an option and come up with an alternative solution, since I believe she would be happier if all of her friends could come instead of choosing a destination where half of them wouldn't be able to make it.
The last straw, however, was when she boasted that her fiance allowed her to spend all of his money on the wedding and that she is sorry that my boyfriend doesn't do something like that for me. From that moment, I didn't want to spend time with her anymore and distanced myself from her. It has been almost three months.
| Daybeforetmw
Breaking vases
Shutterstock / badboydt7
I went to my cousin's wedding — let's call his fiance, Beth. The ceremony was gorgeous, in a garde with the couple under a vine-covered pergola. While the gentiles were having their pictures taken, I noticed the maid of honor having strong words with the bride.
The groom's sister, a bridesmaid, let's call her Claire, told me that Beth was freaking out on the maid of honor to put back on the earrings that all the bridesmaids were wearing or she would ruin the pictures. The maid of honor was having a reaction to them. Claire said her earlobes were so swollen she couldn't put the backs on.
Dinner was inside, buffet style. I was in the ladies room when I heard yelling in the hallway. The bride was freaking out on her planner and the catering manager because there wasn't enough food, even though BOTH of them had advised to up the amount because at a buffet you can't control portion sizes. The chef says he can add more sides and salads for a fee, but she's basically screwed on the prime rib and chicken.
Somehow Beth had found out that in another dining room there was a 50th wedding dinner for a couple, and they were having prime rib too. She demanded he give her any remaining roast. He says no, so she then screams at her planner to get it for her or she's fired. I leave the ladies room because I want to see faces.
The chef is clearly astounded and the planner says there is no way that she's going to ruin her reputation or working relationship with the venue over a situation that Beth created by not following their advice. Beth grabs a vase of flowers off the side table between the restroom doors, smashes it to the floor and screams "you're fired!"
| More_Hold4833
My big fat vegan wedding
Shutterstock / eldar nurkovic
So my brother got married last weekend. He and my new sister in law had known each other for a few years now. She had been vegan since she was 12 and had also converted my brother in recent years, so they decided to make the wedding vegan.
Basically, this meant that all the food was vegan and they used petals from their garden instead of plastic confetti to make the wedding as eco-friendly as possible.
The problem I often have with eating anywhere is that I have multiple allergies: peanuts, soy, sesame and a mild shellfish allergy as well. The first three are very serious and have landed me in hospital in the past because of cross contamination.
I talked to my brother about if there would be anything safe for me to eat at the event, but because they're using a local lady's business as the catering service instead of something professional I did not feel comfortable enough that there was absolutely zero chance of me having a reaction, especially because the allergens were ingredients in many of the dishes. It felt too risky, so I said I'd bring my own food and he agreed that was the best option.
The wedding day arrives and it comes time to eat. Everyone is digging into the food, and I pull out my tupperware quite happily and dig in when I see the bride staring at me with horror on her face. I had bought a homemade salad box which had two eggs on top and she literally just stared at me in disgust the entire time we ate without saying anything.
After the meal was finished, she pulled me to the side and said I ruined her meal, her appetite and her day and that I'm clearly "a selfish person because I can't even go one meal without animal secretions in a vegan wedding."
| landofsunshine1
Bridezilla as match maker
Shutterstock /Omar Tursic
My fiancé and I have been together for seven years. He has a best friend, John, who is now getting married to his fiancé, Kim.
Kim is a very possessive and controlling person and has been this way since I first met her seven years ago. She came into my fiancé's friend group as John's girlfriend but she always tried to dictate who anyone was allowed to invite and she claimed she and her own best friend are the only "females" allowed around the guys.
She wanted to set up her best friend with either my fiancée or another guy from the group who was single. The other guy moved away for some family business and my fiancée stayed in our hometown so Kim was trying to set him up with her bff.
My fiancée wasn't interested at all. When he got with me Kim was very bitter and would take it out on me by insulting me and trying to dictate whether I can join them in outings and all that. She said she and John are allowed to hang out together because they're the "main couple" but not us. She always tried to exclude me in order to pair my fiancée with her bff.
We got engaged a year ago and Kim was bitter about that and even my fiancé's best friend said how Kim hates hearing of our engagement because "there goes her plan."
Now they're getting married and my fiancé is a groomsman and Kim's best friend is a bridesmaid. She wants to pair them together, sit them together, have them share intimate, romantic dances together and she said random guests like me will be sat in the back of the room. I'm like yeah, I'm out.
I had enough of that disrespect. My fiancé was also offended by all this and said he'll attend as a guest but he cannot be a pawn in someone's wedding because the bride tries to plan something shady.
| That_Climate2632
Stag and dough
Shutterstock /Vasyl Zabuga
This is about my friend's upcoming wedding this fall and her stag and doe. Isn't the purpose of a stag and doe to raise money for the wedding? My friend is having a tiny wedding just over state lines and calling it a destination wedding (1.5 hour drive) and only inviting 20 guests.
They're most likely doing it in a hotel conference room but the ceremony is on the beach, so that will be pretty. It's not going to be a big traditional expensive wedding.
My husband wasn't invited. Her friends aren't except me and one other person. However, she texts me asking me to Venmo her $80 from both of us for stag tickets. My husband can't even go because he'll be traveling for work.
I will be giving her a wedding gift and paying to stay overnight, doing the bachelorette stuff and OBVIOUSLY was going to get a ticket and go to the stag and doe. It just struck me as rude to text me "hi can you Venmo me now? I'll put the tickets in your mailbox." The stag is two months away and I would think I'd be seeing her before then but we haven't hung out since March.
| bearsywearsy
How dare you get robbed?
Shutterstock /ViDI Studio
Went on a bachelorette trip with my cousin. Destination: Austin, Texas. I was the maid of honor. The trip was going great — we stopped to do some sight seeing. I had to use the bathroom so I ran down the street to a hotel. After relieving myself, I headed back to the group.
On the way I was attacked by a homeless person. He tried to rob me. I made it away with only some scratches and a bruise. When I made it back to my group, I tried to explain what just occurred but they cut me off quickly saying "it's the bride's day it's not about you." I was very confused.
The bridesmaids got in my face — not going to lie I got verbally defensive because I was still in fight or flight mode. But I never said anything to the bride. To make a long story short the bride texted me after the trip to tell me I could no longer be in her wedding and neither could my kids who were supposed to be flower girls.
Proceeded to tell me I wanted her life and she lives "the rich life." Her parents are middle class and she still lives at home. She told me I would have to tell my daughters they can't be flower girls and it's all my fault because I almost got robbed.
| Swimming_Excuse5690
Accidental gender reveal
Shutterstock /FamVeld
I am not close with my family. I live in a different state, so I don't have much contact with them. My brother got married last weekend and invited me. I told him I'll come and not have a plus one. My husband and I recently separated, and after that I found out I was pregnant.
My extended family didn't know about the separation or about the pregnancy. I told my brother I was pregnant when we spoke on the phone before the wedding. My family knew my marriage was very rocky and my parents knew about the pregnancy.
So I am 7 months pregnant right now and getting a divorce. When I showed up to the wedding, everyone was super shocked to see me be pregnant and alone there.
During the ceremony, the priest mentioned my pregnancy to make a joke or whatever about what is next for the bride and groom — babies, something like "and after your baby, hopefully many more will join this beautiful family of the bride and groom."
Bride was pissed off, because now EVERYONE knew I was pregnant. During the picture taking part of the reception, my brother says "okay and now I want to take a pic with my favorite sister and my FIRST nephew." I laughed and said "niece, actually" and he was super happy. We took a picture.
Bride came to me later and called me out for up-staging her wedding with not just my pregnancy but also the "baby gender announcement." Her family is obviously on her side, my brother thinks she is acting crazy and I did nothing wrong and my parents think I should have informed people I was pregnant before coming to the wedding and should have kept quiet about gender.
| Breakmyheart94
It's bride o'clock
Shutterstock /AliAshraf
My friend is getting married this summer. I have just been advised that we are required to be at her venue for 7 a.m. for hair and make up. She is not having a ceremony this day and the reception is in the evening.
I have two small children and their preschool does not open until 7a.m. and I am an hour away — I would be an hour late. I have asked the bride what the time slot is for hair and make up and if I can be a little late so I can get my kids to school and be one of the last people to go.
There are about eight people doing hair and make up, but she refuses to tell me the time slot. I have asked her to simply ask the hair and make-up company if it would be an issue and she also refuses to do this. I am just told "you're to be there at 7 a.m, so the time slot doesn't matter."
She also said "you were sent a save the date a year ago" and "you are the only one causing me stress and making your problems my problems." I have brought up the point that if I am just sitting there for hours does this need to be such a big deal?
She basically told me if I'm not there for 7 a.m. I don't need to be in her wedding. I have already purchased the dress. I just feel this is extremely unreasonable — you spend so much money to be in someone's wedding and there is no appreciation and they deem it acceptable to treat you with demands and ultimatums?
| Inevitable_Ad_6998
Princess bride and her frogs
Shutterstock /HW Photowork
So my cousin has a wedding in less than two months. At first she sent everyone invites with some leafy design and told us to choose our dresses and costumes according to those leaves' colors.
There were a whole bunch of different greens, so fine, whatever. I looked more at minty shades, it's a summer wedding and I wouldn't want to blend with trees and grass and all of that. But no. Next thing I know, the bride sends new invites with a new dress code. Green grass and lemon yellow. Sheesh. Good thing I didn't buy a dress by then.
So my relatives and I discussed the colors and figured we could choose different shades of grass or something, so we wouldn't blend together in a one big naked Shrek. Some time later she sends new invites.
Yep, you guessed it. She added pictures of exactly two shades of green and one yellow we are allowed to wear. We will look like one big frog and she'll be like a Thumbelina in her white wedding gown.
| Annelieze
Shutterstock /LanKS
I've been a wedding vendor (hair and makeup) for over 10 years now and I can probably start my own subreddit with the stories that I have. One that comes to mind happened a little over a year ago.
My team and I were on location at the hotel where the bride was staying, getting her all done up for her reception event. She had a big gap between the ceremony and reception and opted for an entirely different hair and makeup look than her ceremony.
After we were done, we started packing up, at least my team members did. I typically stick around for any last minute touch ups. Big mistake. This bride's husband walks in, they start chatting, she looks at his finger and asks where his ring is. He said something along the lines that it didn't fit right and he was afraid he would lose it.
This girl starts screaming, crying and shaking, saying things like, "if you don't want to wear the ring then I'm not wearing mine either" and "what's the point of being married — should just annul this wedding." She takes off her ring and flings it at him.
The groom walks out. At this point, I didn't know what to do — her makeup was running, I had to either leave quickly or stick around and clean her up — but she was like a ticking time bomb. Her mom was in the room and went up to her to console her. She lashed out on her mom.
Finally, her father comes in and whispers a few things to her, calming her down. And then I was asked to fix her up. I did my job, and then ran the hell out of there before another meltdown occurred.
| bridalmakeupgalny
My boss' wedding
I WALL / Shutterstock
My first job out of college, a colleague got engaged and asked three colleagues to be her bridesmaids. I had only known her for a matter of months, but I didn't feel comfortable saying no because she was one of my bosses.
In addition to being in a wedding for someone I barely knew, which is uncomfortable in its own right, there were so many horrible things about this nightmare bridezilla wedding.
First, I ended up hosting both her bachelorette AND her shower because no one in her life planned anything. She showed up to her own shower an hour late, hungover and wearing pajamas when she demanded that everyone dress for a luncheon.
She ordered our dresses from Etsy (as opposed to any bridesmaid dress company) and they looked like seafoam green raw silk pillowcases with holes cut for the arms and head. They tied in giant bows at the back and we all looked like literal infants. She wouldn't let us wear heels with said "dresses" because the groom was kinda short and we all had to buy new flats in a specific shade of gold.
She wanted us to wear our hair in a really ugly, extremely complicated updo — and said we would have to pay to have one of the hairstylists to do our hair (we refused).
The wedding was on a Sunday in an extremely inconvenient and far away location, and it was not the Sunday of a long weekend. The rehearsal dinner for this SUNDAY wedding was THURSDAY and started at 4 p.m., requiring everyone to leave work in the middle of the day.
She forced us to stay at an expensive hotel in the area the night before the wedding for no apparent reason and refused to pay for our hotel room.
| gabygygax
Bridesmaid blues
El Nariz / Shutterstock
She asked 16 girls to be bridesmaids. In the year-and-a-half between the engagement and wedding, all but six dropped out (three were her sisters).
She wanted 16 separate shades of blue and 16 different styles of dresses for each bridesmaid and then threw a fit when the store didn't have that many options.
She demanded everyone pay for a week-long bachelorette party in Vegas (including her share) and then got mad when some people opted out (I was a single mom/college student at the time).
Her parents gave her a $20K budget, but she ended up spending $100K and demanding they pay for it. They took out a loan and they are still paying it off.
She wanted everyone to have the same shade of hair, so she asked the two blonde bridesmaids to dye their hair (they declined).
She paid for nothing for the bridesmaids (traditionally the brides pay for something—either the hair/makeup or dress) but demanded that we purchase specific shoes, jewelry, dress, hair, makeup, etc. On top of that, she requested that we stay an entire weekend at the hotel she was getting married at.
All told, costs for the wedding—not including a gift—was well over $2K per bridesmaid.
| hotelgirl985
The wedding DJ
Maria Dryfhout / Shutterstock
I worked as a caterer and a wedding DJ for about 15 years.
I was DJ-ing a wedding in a shabby little reception hall out in the middle of the sticks for a redneck bride and groom.
The bride was wasted by the time I started playing my set (around 8 p.m.) She came up to me right away and told me that I need to play the song "Save A Horse (Ride A Cowboy)" like every four songs, and I try to tell her that it's a bad idea but she insisted, so I agreed.
About an hour into the night I play the song for the 10th time and people in the crowd started to boo. Please note that everytime I played the song I passed it off onto the bride by saying something like "it's time for a special request from the bride," so as to not destroy my reputation.
So people boo and start walking off the dance floor. Bride sees this and loses it.
She runs up to the stage and demands the mic. "Get back on the dance floor, or this thing is done!" Her guests ignore her. She yells again and no one pays her any attention.
She then marches over to the cake and gift table and flips it over, yelling "EVERYONE GET OUT OF MY WEDDING."
Her guests who did not seem all that surprised end up leaving. I still got paid so in the end it did not matter too much from my end but wow… Just wow.
| itsalltruesteve
Get better deals right from your browser
There's always a better deal when you're shopping online, but who has the time to price-match?
Once you install the Capital One Shopping browser extension for free, it could help you stop wasting your money on your everyday online purchases. It will search the internet for you and give you alternative prices on a different site or an active coupon code you didn't know about.
Download the Capital One Shopping extension right now and start saving today.
The golden secrets of Fort Knox revealed
America's gold stockpile has fueled curiosity and conspiracy theories. How much do we know?
By Doug Whiteman
10 tactics to keep your summer vacation on budget
With pent-up demand, labor shortages and surging prices, summer travel won't be a bargain this year.
By Brian J. O'Connor
14 valuable coins
A single penny can be worth a small fortune.
By Serah Louis
3 stock picks for the anti-'woke' investor
Invest in what matters to you.
By Bethan Moorcraft
The content provided on MoneyWise is information to help users become financially literate. It is neither tax nor legal advice, is not intended to be relied upon as a forecast, research or investment advice, and is not a recommendation, offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities or to adopt any investment strategy. Tax, investment and all other decisions should be made, as appropriate, only with guidance from a qualified professional. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, either express or implied, with respect to the data provided, the timeliness thereof, the results to be obtained by the use thereof or any other matter.


text:
Indexed in Web of Science
To receive news and publication updates for Anemia, enter your email address in the box below.
PDF 1,981
Volume 2014, Article ID 932486, 7 pages
An Etiologic Profile of Anemia in 405 Geriatric Patients
Tabea Geisel,1,2 Julia Martin,1,2 Bettina Schulze,3 Roland Schaefer,4 Matthias Bach,3 Garth Virgin,5 and Jürgen Stein1,2,6
1Crohn Colitis Center Rhein-Main, 60594 Frankfurt/Main, Germany
2Institute of Nutritional Science, University of Giessen, 35392 Giessen, Germany
3St. Elisabethen Krankenhaus, 60487 Frankfurt/Main, Germany
4Krankenhaus Sachsenhausen, Teaching Hospital of the J. W. von Goethe University Frankfurt/Main, 60594 Frankfurt/Main, Germany
5Vifor Pharma Deutschland GmbH, 81379 Munich, Germany
6Department of Gastroenterology and Nutritional Medicine, Krankenhaus Sachsenhausen, Teaching Hospital of the J. W. von Goethe University Frankfurt/Main, 60594 Frankfurt/Main, Germany
Received 22 November 2013; Accepted 14 January 2014; Published 23 February 2014
Academic Editor: Donald S. Silverberg
Copyright © 2014 Tabea Geisel et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Background. Anemia is a common condition in the elderly and a significant risk factor for increased morbidity and mortality, reducing not only functional capacity and mobility but also quality of life. Currently, few data are available regarding anemia in hospitalized geriatric patients. Our retrospective study investigated epidemiology and causes of anemia in 405 hospitalized geriatric patients. Methods. Data analysis was performed using laboratory parameters determined during routine hospital admission procedures (hemoglobin, ferritin, transferrin saturation, C-reactive protein, vitamin B12, folic acid, and creatinine) in addition to medical history and demographics. Results. Anemia affected approximately two-thirds of subjects. Of 386 patients with recorded hemoglobin values, 66.3% were anemic according to WHO criteria, mostly (85.1%) in a mild form. Anemia was primarily due to iron deficiency (65%), frequently due to underlying chronic infection (62.1%), or of mixed etiology involving a combination of chronic disease and iron deficiency, with absolute iron deficiency playing a comparatively minor role. Conclusion. Greater awareness of anemia in the elderly is warranted due to its high prevalence and negative effect on outcomes, hospitalization duration, and mortality. Geriatric patients should be routinely screened for anemia and etiological causes of anemia individually assessed to allow timely initiation of appropriate therapy.
Iron deficiency is the most prevalent nutritional deficiency worldwide. This metal ion is an essential element in a variety of physiological processes in human beings, including the production of energy in the brain. Iron is also an enzymatic cofactor in the synthesis of neurotransmitters and myelin and is well known for being especially important as a means of oxygen transportation [1]. The main consequence of iron deficiency is anemia, a common condition and significant problem in the older population. However, many physicians continue to neglect the significance of anemia as a serious clinical condition in the elderly [2]. While decreased hemoglobin levels were previously largely considered a normal consequence of aging, there is now evidence that anemia is associated with an increased risk for morbidity and mortality [3, 4]. According to hemoglobin (Hb) cut-off levels defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) (<12 g/dL for females, <13 g/dL for males) [5], anemia is present in 10% of women and 11% of men over the age of 65, increasing to 20% of women and 26% of men over 85 [6]. An even higher prevalence is seen in hospitalized patients, of whom approximately 40–50% have been found to be anemic [7]. The primary consequences of anemia, even mild anemia in which hemoglobin values are only marginally reduced (>9.5 g/dL), are the impairment of functional capacities and a reduced quality of life [8–10]. Furthermore, in elderly persons, anemia can impair physical performance and mobility, thus increasing the risk of falls. An association between anemia in older adults and mortality has been observed in several studies, even in the absence of concomitant illness. In elderly patients, anemia is often overlooked, despite the fact that it has been shown to have potentially serious consequences [2–5, 10].
Data describing the prevalence and causes of anemia in hospitalized geriatric populations are rare and incongruent. Our aim was therefore to determine the epidemiology and etiology of anemia in a hospitalized geriatric population in Germany.
2.1. Study Design
In this German study, all patients who were admitted between March 2010 and March 2011 to the Geriatric Clinic of the St. Elisabethen Krankenhaus in Frankfurt, Germany, and whose medical records were available were included. The data was analyzed retrospectively.
Patients included in the study were aged 65 years or over. The presence of anemia was defined according to criteria issued by the WHO: hemoglobin (Hb) <12 g/dL for females and <13 g/dL for males. Hb values on admission were available for 386 of the 405 patients (95.3%) and three grades of anemia severity were differentiated: severe (Hb < 8 g/dL), moderate (Hb 8 to <9.5 g/dL), and mild (Hb ≥ 9.5 g/dL). In addition, patient data were assessed for routinely determined levels of serum iron (in 92.6% of patients), serum ferritin (95.6%), transferrin saturation (TSAT) (99.0%), vitamin B12 (91.9%), folic acid (88.1%), CRP (96.8%), and serum creatinine (99.51%).
2.1.1. Definition of Anemia Classification
Anemia Associated with Iron Deficiency. Patients with Hb levels under 12 g/dL (women) and 13 g/dL (men) and a TSAT value <20% were considered to have anemia associated with iron deficiency. Three subcategories were defined.(i)Anemia related to absolute iron deficiency (iron deficiency anemia, IDA) was characterized by a decreased serum ferritin level (<30 μg/mL) in combination with low serum CRP levels (≤0.5 mg/dL).(ii)Anemia caused by inflammation (AI) was defined by high ferritin levels (>100 μg/mL) and increased CRP (≥0.5 mg/dL).(iii)Patients with ferritin levels between 30 μg/mL and 100 μg/mL and high CRP levels (≥0.5 mg/dL) were classified as having mixed anemia (IDA/AI).
Anemia due to Factors Other Than Iron Deficiency. Patients with Hb levels under 12 g/dL (women) and 13 g/dL (men) and a TSAT value ≥ 20% were considered to have anemia caused by factors other than iron deficiency. Four subcategories were defined.(i)Anemia secondary to cobalamin deficiency was diagnosed if the serum level was <150 pg/mL.(ii)Anemia secondary to folic acid deficiency was diagnosed if the serum level was <2 μg/L.(iii)Anemia of chronic renal insufficiency (CRI) was classified by creatinine values >1.2 mg/dL in females and >1.5 mg/dL in males [11–13].(iv)Anemia secondary to other etiologies was defined as unexplained anemia (UA) [6]. See Figure 1.
Figure 1: Anemia-related laboratory parameters at time of admission (TSAT = transferrin saturation).
The primary objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of anemia and of different etiological subtypes of anemia in a hospitalized geriatric patient population.
Descriptive statistics were attained through the calculation of arithmetical means, standard deviations, and minimum and maximum values of all data. To test the significance of all categorical variables, the Chi-squared test (Pearson) was performed. Arithmetical means were calculated with -tests for dependent and independent samples, and correlations were determined using the Spearman Rho method. All outcomes with a minimum of were considered significant. Missing values were disregarded in all statistical tests. All statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics 20SPSS statistical software.
During the period studied, 405 patients (116 men and 289 women) who were admitted to the geriatric clinic had medical records available and were therefore included in the study. The average age was years (range 65–101 years). The patients were divided into three observational groups according to age: 65 to 75 years, 76 to 85 years, and over 85 years of age, representing 12.10%, 36.79%, and 51.11% of the study population, respectively.
The most frequent main causes of hospitalization in this geriatric patient group were fractures (39.4%, ), cardiovascular disease (18.4%, ), and disturbances of gait and mobility (16.8%, ). Other reasons for admission were digestive tract diseases (3.9%, ), disorders of the musculoskeletal apparatus (3.7%, ), neoplasms (3.7%, ), infectious diseases (2.4%, ), and injuries (2.4%, ), with a further 6.0% () admitted for other reasons.
Table 1 shows the distribution of these conditions according to specific anemia subtypes. On average, the patients had eight additional diagnoses concurrent to the primary diagnosis, and mean duration of stay in the clinic of all study subjects was 22 days. The main demographic characteristics of the patients are summarized in Table 2.
Table 1: Anemia subtypes according to main reason for hospitalization.
Table 2: Iron parameters in all patients subdivided into age groups.
Of those hospitalized patients whose Hb values at admission were available (), 66.3% (74.8% of men and 62.9% of women) were anemic. There was no correlation between age and Hb level. While only four patients (1.5%) were found to be severely anemic, 37 (13.5%) had moderate anemia and the remaining 85.1% were categorized as having mild anemia.
The total number of patients diagnosed with anemia was 237, of whom 154 (65.0%) were defined as having iron deficiency anemia, with TSAT values <20%. Absolute IDA was found in only 7 (4.6%) of these patients, while 33 (21.4%) had a combination of IDA and AI. The majority of patients with IDA (, 61.7%) were diagnosed with AI, indicated by high CRP and ferritin levels.
Decreased levels of vitamin B12 or folic acid were determined as the cause of anemia in 30 patients (5.9% and 6.8%, resp.). In a further 46 (19.4%) study subjects, anemia was found to be the result of chronic renal insufficiency. The remaining patients fell into none of these categories and were therefore classified as having "unexplained anemia."
The mean serum ferritin level of 315.7 μg/L fell within the normal reference range. Serum ferritin values were, however, increased in the majority of study subjects (64%), while 35% were found to have normal serum ferritin levels.
Anemia is a common condition in the elderly, especially in hospitalized geriatric patients, and is known to be associated with increased morbidity and mortality. The present study was specifically aimed at investigating the epidemiology and etiology of anemia in a hospitalized geriatric population. Blood samples were retrospectively analyzed for the purpose of the study.
The most striking conclusion drawn is the high prevalence of anemia across the board in elderly patients admitted to hospital owing to a wide range of different disorders. Two-thirds of the patients studied were found to be anemic on admission. Although one other study, also focusing on geriatric inpatients, has shown a similar prevalence of anemia [7], most research involving elderly subjects has found the prevalence to be lower [6, 10, 14]. This discrepancy may be accountable to the fact that, in contrast to the current study with its population of hospitalized elderly patients, most other studies have examined ambulant patients or older people in the community [15, 16]. Geriatric persons with health problems severe enough to result in hospital admission are more likely than the geriatric population as a whole to suffer from acute infection and also to have an increased risk of blood loss due to surgery. Thus, hospitalized patients are at a higher risk of developing anemia [17]. Anemia was found in most cases to be mild, with an Hb level > 10 g/dL, in accordance with previously published results [6, 18]. However, even mild anemia is frequently associated with negative outcomes with regard to mortality and morbidity in the elderly [2, 19] and should therefore not be accepted as a normal physiological response to the aging process. Furthermore, the etiological origins of anemia must be determined in all cases in order to facilitate the choice and implementation of effective therapy. It might be seen as a limitation of the present study that reasons for hospital admission were not taken into account. However, we deliberately chose to include all geriatric patients admitted to our clinic, independent of grounds for hospitalization, in order to gain a broader perspective on the prevalence and causes of anemia in elderly patients.
No statistically significant correlation was detected between patients' age and Hb values. This is not in keeping with results of previous research, which have suggested an age-related decrease in Hb levels [6]. Again, this may relate to the specific elderly population included, since all study subjects had serious health issues (and thus, presumably, an increased risk of anemia), whereas in the geriatric population as a whole, the prevalence of serious illness increases with age. Thus, in terms of general state of health, the older the hospitalized patients are, the more representative they can be considered to be of the general population in that age group. As a consequence, what might be considered an innate "bias" of our population towards seriously ill patients (in comparison to studies involving nonhospitalized geriatric persons) is not independent of age, but probably more pronounced in the context of the younger geriatric population.
Determination of the underlying cause of anemia in geriatric persons is complicated by comorbidity and polypharmacy, which are particularly common among the elderly [5]. This must also be taken into account when classifying and comparing the results.
Nonetheless, anemia in the elderly can generally be categorized into four major types: anemia related to nutrient deficiencies (iron, cobalamin, and folic acid), anemia related to chronic inflammation, anemia due to renal insufficiency, and unexplained anemia [6].
Of 237 patients considered to be anemic, 154 (65.0%) had TSAT values <20% and were therefore diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia. In terms of the classification of anemia, the most common etiological subtypes were anemia of inflammation or a mixed form resulting from AI and IDA. Only a few studies have investigated the etiologic profile of anemia in hospitalized patients in the age range from 65 to 101 years [7, 14]. Comparing our results to previous studies is complicated by differences in anemia classification. However, inflammation seems to be the predominant cause of anemia in the observed population, with nutritive factors playing only a limited role [14]. In elderly persons, the causes of anemia vary depending on their clinical setting. AI and IDA are, however, the most common forms of anemia both in community-dwelling and in hospitalized geriatric patients [14]. In our study, IDA was less prevalent than expected in light of results obtained in prior studies.
Only 4.6% of our study subjects with iron deficiency-associated anemia were found to have absolute iron deficiency anemia (IDA), in comparison to 17% in previous reports [6, 20]. A possible explanation for this discrepancy might be the higher mean age (83.6 years) of our patients compared to populations of similar studies, whose mean ages were between 77 and 80 years [13, 21]. Furthermore, we had a high number of comorbidities in our study population. A recent study with a comparable prevalence of comorbidities disclosed an IDA rate of 31% [7].
Sixty-two percent of patients with iron deficiency-related anemia were diagnosed with AI. Petrosyan et al. reported a similar prevalence rate (60%) of AI in a comparable study population [7]. Prevalence rates in community-dwelling elderly persons, however, may be considerably lower. For example, the NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) III demonstrated a prevalence of 24% for this type of anemia in a community-dwelling elderly population [6]. Considerable differences in prevalence may be accountable to the setting (community-dwelling elderly, nursing home residents, or hospital patients), variations in mean age of the study population, and the resultant respective variations in the number of comorbidities and chronic conditions. While AI predominantly occurs as a consequence of chronic or long-term illness or infection, it is also associated with malignancy and inflammatory disorders. These are conditions whose prevalence increases with advancing age and which are more likely to be encountered in a hospitalized setting. Since fractures were the most frequent main cause of hospitalization in our study population, these patients came into the rehabilitation ward. Since an increase in inflammation parameters (CRP and ferritin) is to be expected under these circumstances, this represents an additional explanation for the high prevalence of AI in our study [22]. Studies of noninstitutionalized older persons have demonstrated higher and lower prevalences of IDA and AI, respectively [21, 23].
In our study, anemia of mixed etiology resulting from iron deficiency and chronic inflammation was also analyzed. Thirty-three patients (21.43%) were found to have combined IDA and AI.
Anemia due to deficiencies of vitamin B12 or folic acid was found in 5.91% and 6.75% of patients, respectively. Other studies showed higher prevalence rates of 10–20% for cobalamin and 21% for folic acid deficiency [7, 24, 25]. Guralnik et al. determined anemia secondary to folic acid or cobalamin deficiency in 14% of their elderly population [6]. However, comparison of these results is of limited value, as different diagnostic criteria were used.
Anemia of chronic renal insufficiency (CRI) was defined by creatinine values >1.2 mg/dL in females and >1.5 mg/dL in males. Forty-seven (19.41%) of the elderly patients assessed were found to have CRI-related anemia. While previous studies have reported a prevalence of 8–17.5% for anemia resulting from renal insufficiency, most of these studies used a glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of <30 mL/min as the defining criterion for chronic kidney disease [7, 26, 27]. While GFR is indeed considered a better parameter for the diagnosis of chronic renal insufficiency, the present study, due to its retrospective design, was only able to assess chronic renal illness on the basis of the available creatinine values. The results of the studies are therefore not directly comparable.
The patients that fell into none of the given etiological subgroup categories were therefore classified as having unexplained anemia. Possible underlying mechanisms for unexplained anemia include physiological changes such as higher circulating levels of proinflammatory cytokines, myelodysplasia, decreased androgen levels, and a decrease in the proliferative capacity of bone marrow stem cells [6, 28].
Our study has strengths and limitations. The most limiting factor is the retrospective design of the study. Consequently, only those laboratory parameters which were collected as clinical routine on admission were available to be assessed.
Important strengths of the study are the large study population (), the wide spectrum of reasons for admission and of underlying disease or condition, and the use of a variety of different iron and inflammation parameters as assessment criteria for the classification of different causes of anemia.
Conclusive evidence from a large number of studies has confirmed that adequate treatment of iron deficiency significantly improves rates of mortality and morbidity in patients suffering from a wide range of conditions, including chronic heart failure [29, 30], coronary heart disease [31], chronic kidney disease [32, 33], cancer [34, 35], and rheumatoid arthritis [36, 37]. Nevertheless, screening and treatment of ID continue to be widely neglected in the routine management of geriatric patients. There is clearly a need for greater awareness of the high prevalence of anemia in the elderly and of its significance in terms of poorer outcomes, prolonged hospital stays, and increased mortality. Our study underlines the importance of routine screening and individual assessment of the etiological causes of anemia in geriatric patients, allowing the timely initiation of optimal and appropriate therapy. In addition, the perioperative administration of intravenous iron is advisable in order to reduce anemia-related complications and minimize transfusion requirements.
Rather than relying on a single biomarker, screening should include a range of parameters including TSAT, serum ferritin, and CRP. A new generation of intravenous iron preparations allows rapid single-session doses of up to 1,000 mg, thus offering an excellent option for effective treatment and prevention of iron deficiency in all patients, including the elderly [38]. Dosage can be calculated using standard calculation methods such as the Ganzoni formula.
AI: Anemia of inflammation
CRI: Chronic renal insufficiency
CRP: C-reactive protein
GFR: Glomerular filtration rate
IDA: Iron deficiency anemia
NHANES: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
TSAT: Transferrin saturation
UA: Unexplained anemia
WHO: World Health Organization.
Tabea Geisel, Julia Martin, and Bettina Schulze have no conflict of interests.
All authors contributed to the concept and design of the work and to the acquisition and interpretation of data. Tabea Geisel drafted the paper. All authors revised the paper for important intellectual content and approved the final version for publication.
The sponsor's role was limited to financial support only. The sponsor took no active part in data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, or paper preparation. The authors would like to thank Janet Collins for proof reading and language support. Garth Virgin is an employee of Vifor Pharma Deutschland GmbH. Roland Schaefer has acted as a consultant for Vifor Pharma Deutschland GmbH. Matthias Bach has received speaker honoraria for Vifor Pharma Deutschland GmbH. Jürgen Stein has received speaker honoraria and is a member of the board of Vifor Pharma Deutschland GmbH.
R. R. Crichton, S. Wilmet, R. Legssyer, and R. J. Ward, "Molecular and cellular mechanisms of iron homeostasis and toxicity in mammalian cells," Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry, vol. 91, no. 1, pp. 9–18, 2002. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
A. R. Nissenson, L. T. Goodnough, and R. W. Dubois, "Anemia: not just an innocent bystander?" Archives of Internal Medicine, vol. 163, no. 12, pp. 1400–1404, 2003. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
S. D. Denny, M. N. Kuchibhatla, and H. J. Cohen, "Impact of anemia on mortality, cognition, and function in community-dwelling elderly," American Journal of Medicine, vol. 119, no. 4, pp. 327–334, 2006. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
B. W. J. H. Penninx, M. Pahor, R. C. Woodman, and J. M. Guralnik, "Anemia in old age is associated with increased mortality and hospitalization," Journals of Gerontology A, vol. 61, no. 5, pp. 474–479, 2006. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
World Health Organization, "Nutritional Anemia: Report of a WHO Scientific Group," Technical Report Series, vol. 405, pp. 1–40, 1968. View at Google Scholar
J. M. Guralnik, R. S. Eisenstaedt, L. Ferrucci, H. G. Klein, and R. C. Woodman, "Prevalence of anemia in persons 65 years and older in the United States: evidence for a high rate of unexplained anemia," Blood, vol. 104, no. 8, pp. 2263–2268, 2004. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
I. Petrosyan, G. Blaison, and E. Andrés, "Anaemia in the elderly: an aetiologic profile of a prospective cohort of 95 hospitalised patients," European Journal of Internal Medicine, vol. 23, pp. 524–528, 2012. View at Google Scholar
A. A. Lash and S. M. Coyer, "Anemia in older adults," Medsurg Nursing, vol. 17, no. 5, pp. 298–305, 2008. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
D. R. Thomas, "Anemia and quality of life: unrecognized and undertreated," Journals of Gerontology A, vol. 59, no. 3, pp. 238–241, 2004. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
W. P. J. den Elzen, J. M. Willems, R. G. J. Westendorp, A. J. M. De Craen, W. J. J. Assendelft, and J. Gussekloo, "Effect of anemia and comorbidity on functional status and mortality in old age: results from the Leiden 85-plus Study," Canadian Medical Association Journal, vol. 181, no. 3-4, pp. 151–157, 2009. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
G. Weiss and L. T. Goodnough, "Anemia of chronic disease," New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 352, no. 10, pp. 1011–1059, 2005. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
C. Gasche, A. Berstad, R. Befrits et al., "Guidelines on the diagnosis and management of iron deficiency and anemia in inflammatory bowel diseases," Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, vol. 13, no. 12, pp. 1545–1553, 2007. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
E. Joosten, W. Pelemans, M. Hiele, J. Noyen, R. Verhaeghe, and M. A. Boogaerts, "Prevalence and causes of anaemia in a geriatric hospitalized population," Gerontology, vol. 38, no. 1-2, pp. 111–117, 1992. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
M. Tettamanti, U. Lucca, F. Gandini et al., "Prevalence, incidence and types of mild anemia in the elderly: the "Health and Anemia" population-based study," Haematologica, vol. 95, no. 11, pp. 1849–1856, 2010. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
E. M. Inelmen, M. D'Alessio, M. R. A. Gatto et al., "Descriptive analysis of the prevalence of anemia in a randomly selected sample of elderly people living at home: some results of an Italian multicentric study," Aging, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 81–89, 1994. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
M. E. Salive, J. Cornoni-Huntley, J. M. Guralnik et al., "Anemia and hemoglobin levels in older persons: relationship with age, gender, and health status," Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, vol. 40, no. 5, pp. 489–496, 1992. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
E. A. Price, R. Mehra, T. H. Holmes, and S. L. Schrier, "Anemia in older persons: etiology and evaluation," Blood Cells, Molecules, and Diseases, vol. 46, no. 2, pp. 159–165, 2011. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
R. Eisenstaedt, B. W. J. H. Penninx, and R. C. Woodman, "Anemia in the elderly: current understanding and emerging concepts," Blood Reviews, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 213–226, 2006. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
L. Ferrucci, J. M. Guralnik, S. Bandinelli et al., "Unexplained anaemia in older persons is characterised by low erythropoietin and low levels of pro-inflammatory markers," British Journal of Haematology, vol. 136, no. 6, pp. 849–855, 2007. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
B. J. Anía, V. J. Suman, V. F. Fairbanks, and L. J. Melton III, "Prevalence of anemia in medical practice: community versus referral patients," Mayo Clinic Proceedings, vol. 69, no. 8, pp. 730–735, 1994. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
A. A. Merchant and C. N. Roy, "Not so benign haematology: anaemia of the elderly," British Journal of Haematology, vol. 156, no. 2, pp. 173–185, 2012. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
P. P. Vinha, A. A. Jordão Jr., J. A. Farina Jr., H. Vannucchi, J. S. Marchini, and S. F. D. C. da Cunha, "Inflammatory and oxidative stress after surgery for the small area corrections of burn sequelae," Acta Cirurgica Brasileira, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 320–324, 2011. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
O. J. Kirkeby, S. Fossum, and C. Risoe, "Anaemia in elderly patients. Incidence and causes of low haemoglobin concentration in a city general practice," Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care, vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 167–171, 1991. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
L. C. Pennypacker, R. H. Allen, J. P. Kelly et al., "High prevalence of cobalamin deficiency in elderly outpatients," Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, vol. 40, no. 12, pp. 1197–1204, 1992. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
R. Carmel, R. Green, D. S. Rosenblatt, and D. Watkins, "Update on cobalamin, folate, and homocysteine," Hematology, vol. 2003, pp. 62–81, 2003. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
A. S. Artz and M. J. Thirman, "Unexplained anemia predominates despite an intensive evaluation in a racially diverse cohort of older adults from a referral anemia clinic," Journals of Gerontology A, vol. 66, no. 8, pp. 925–932, 2011. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
B. Terrier, M. Resche-Rigon, E. Andres et al., "Prevalence, characteristics and prognostic significance of anemia in daily practice," QJM, vol. 105, no. 4, Article ID hcr230, pp. 345–354, 2012. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
L. Ferrucci, R. D. Semba, J. M. Guralnik et al., "Proinflammatory state, hepcidin, and anemia in older persons," Blood, vol. 115, no. 18, pp. 3810–3816, 2010. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
M. Kapoor, M. D. Schleinitz, A. Gemignani, and W. C. Wu, "Outcomes of patients with chronic heart failure and iron deficiency treated with intravenous iron: a meta-analysis," Cardiovascular & Hematological Disorders-Drug Targets, vol. 13, pp. 35–44, 2013. View at Google Scholar
E. A. Jankowska, S. von Haehling, S. D. Anker, I. C. Macdougall, and P. Ponikowski, "Iron deficiency and heart failure: diagnostic dilemmas and therapeutic perspectives," European Heart Journal, vol. 34, pp. 816–829, 2013. View at Google Scholar
N. S. Belousova, S. A. Il'ina, G. É. Chernogoriuk, and L. I. Tiukalova, "The influence of correction of iron metabolism and erythron characteristics in mild iron deficiency states on clinical manifestations of coronary heart disease," Klinicheskaia Meditsina, vol. 90, pp. 41–46, 2012. View at Google Scholar
G. Wong, K. Howard, E. Hodson, M. Irving, and J. C. Craig, "An economic evaluation of intravenous versus oral iron supplementation in people on haemodialysis," Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation, vol. 28, pp. 413–420, 2013. View at Google Scholar
D. W. Coyne, T. Kapoian, W. Suki et al., "Ferric gluconate is highly efficacious in anemic hemodialysis patients with high serum ferritin and low transferrin saturation. Results of the Dialysis Patients' Response to IV Iron with Elevated Ferritin (DRIVE) study," Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 975–984, 2007. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
A. Gafter-Gvili, B. Rozen-Zvi, and L. Vidal, "Intravenous iron supplementation for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced anaemia—systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials," Acta Oncologica, vol. 52, pp. 18–29, 2013. View at Google Scholar
H. T. Steinmetz, "The role of intravenous iron in the treatment of anemia in cancer patients," Therapeutic Advances in Hematology, vol. 3, pp. 177–191, 2012. View at Google Scholar
E. Bloxham, V. Vagadia, K. Scott et al., "Anaemia in rheumatoid arthritis: can we afford to ignore it?" Postgraduate Medical Journal, vol. 87, no. 1031, pp. 596–600, 2011. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
W.-S. Chen, C.-Y. Liu, H.-T. Lee et al., "Effects of intravenous iron saccharate on improving severe anemia in rheumatoid arthritis patients," Clinical Rheumatology, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 469–477, 2012. View at Publisher · View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus
W. Y. Qunibi, "The efficacy and safety of current intravenous iron preparations for the management of iron-deficiency anaemia: a review," Arzneimittel-Forschung, vol. 60, no. 6 a, pp. 399–412, 2010. View at Google Scholar · View at Scopus

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Due to payment problems, we do not recommend joining Carbon Poker! We no longer support or endorse Carbon Poker and highly urge our USA traffic to play at Ignition Poker or Americas Cardroom instead. Our Carbon Poker links will redirect you to Ignition Poker.
We will leave this archived review in place for historical purposes.
To start, click on the "Download Now" button above which will immediately begin the download process. Click on "Save File" to start downloading. The download is a pretty large file at 28 MB's so be patient!
Launch the Poker Installer. Depending on your computer system, you may receive a warning message, go ahead and click Allow or Continue, the software is safe and virus-free! Select your language of choice.
After selecting the language, the software will unpack and launch the Setup program. Click "Next".
Read the User License (boring!) and click "I Agree" to continue.
Use the default or change the install location here. Note the total disk space required and how much you have available. Click "Next".
Use the default and create a CarbonPoker folder or create/select a different folder. Click on "Install".
The Setup program will complete the installation. Click on "Finish" to launch Carbon Poker!
The Carbon Poker client will now launch. Click on "Create Account" to set up your new player account.
Enter your player nickname and password. Agree to the Terms and Conditions by check marking the box. Click on "CREATE MY ACCOUNT".
Enter your REAL personal information. Carbon Poker is a safe and secure site, your personal information is protected and will never be shared with 3rd parties. Click "DONE!".
Carbon Poker is a US friendly poker room on the Merge Gaming Poker Network. Carbon Poker is licensed and regulated by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission in Kahnawake, Canada. Carbon Poker, established in 2007, offers online poker games to players from around the world including USA and Canadian residents.
Carbon Poker and the Merge Network is a growing online poker operation with peak volumes of about 5,000 players.
Carbon hosts the popular Texas Hold'em, Omaha and Stud variants. But what's really cool is that they also host the more rare games such as Razz, 5 Card Draw, Deuce to 7 Lowball, Ace to 5 Lowball, Badugi (Triple Draw), and the ever popular HORSE.
The Carbon poker download offers some fun and unique features. Carbon Poker allows a player to "rabbit hunt", letting players the ability to see the next card in the deck for a folded hand. Carbon Poker has an "expose one card" function so you can play around and try to mess with the minds of your opponents! As often seen on the poker TV shows, the Carbon Poker download allows players to "run it twice" if their opponents agree! Carbon Poker also offers ladies only tournaments, which is a pretty cool and unique feature for the female poker population.
Perhaps the coolest aspect of Carbon Poker is the new, completely mobile version! The mobile Carbon Poker site is built entirely in HTML5 – meaning that you don't need Flash to be able to play online poker on your mobile device. Just open up your browser on your iPhone, iPad, or other smartphone and log in to the Carbon Mobile Poker site and start playing under your account!
Carbon Poker offers a 200% initial deposit bonus up to an amazing $5,000!
The bonus is cleared by earning VIP Points at the rate of 1200 VIP Points for every $10 bonus increment. You earn VIP Points simply by playing at real cash poker games or in a real money tournaments. You are awarded points in a ring game every time a flop is seen as long as you are involved in the hand (you must contribute to the pot). You are awarded 10 points for every $1 paid in rake or in tournament fees.
There is no deadline to earn the full $5,000 bonus, but once you make a withdrawal, the bonus automatically expires, so don't make a withdrawal until you've earned as much of the bonus as possible.
Peruse the tables and find the right table for you. Carbon Poker has the most traffic at around 9PM EST, so that would be your best opportunity to find the games you want. Good luck at Carbon Poker!
Click here to visit Carbon Poker.
For other online gaming options for US players, we recommend visiting USA Casino Codes which provides an extensive collection of trustworthy reviews of the best online casinos and sportsbooks available.


text:
Tag: Analysis
Over-the-air wireless data frame capture
On September 21, 2017 January 8, 2018 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis, Resources, Software
Patent analysis often involves investigating how a particular solution functions in order to determine the potential for use of a given patented claim, and sometimes this investigation entails analyzing wirelessly-communicated data.
In an earlier post I described how to capture IP packets sent to/from wireless devices by using a Windows OS computer as a wireless hotspot together with Wireshark, a packet capture and analysis software tool. While that technique works well for capturing and analyzing IP packets communicated between a wireless device on the wireless LAN (WLAN) and a remote server, that technique does not capture lower-level point-to-point MAC frames communicated between devices on the WLAN, such as between the hotspot computer and a wireless device or between two wireless devices connected to the WLAN.
Within a WLAN, devices do not need to leverage transport or network packets (e.g., TCP/IP) to communicate with one another since they are on a shared medium and so can use the data link instead. To capture the frames sent on the shared wireless medium, there is another process I can recommend. This process provides for capturing communicated frames, such as between a computer application and a smartphone on the WLAN. The guidance below presumes that you have permission to capture wireless frames transmitted over the wireless network.
Fire up an unencrypted IEEE 802.11g wireless access point on a channel that is free or the least crowded. The "g" aspect is important, because newer protocols such as "n" and "ac" complicate capture due to variables like channel width and spatial streams. Having the access point be passcode-free and unencrypted is important as well because it allows for reading frames in the clear (presuming no other encryption is used for the transported data), though it is possible to use Wireshark to decrypt encrypted channels if you know the credentials — this is not covered herein.
Boot Kali Linux on a computer. Kali is a Linux distribution with tools built in for performing penetration testing.
Connect a wireless adapter that support IEEE 802.11g along with "monitor mode." An example is Panda's PAU05 300Mbps Wireless 802.11n USB Adapter — I have found that this particular adapter works well. Some other monitor mode wireless adapters that may function well are listed here and here.
Use Kali built-in tools like airmon-ng and airodump-ng to monitor Wi-Fi channels and capture data while your devices under test are communicating. This further article on passive Wi-Fi connection sniffing provides alternate, but similar, techniques in deep detail.
Once you have captured the sequence of data you wish, discontinue the capture and open the resulting "PCAP" file in Wireshark, which is conveniently preloaded in the Kali Linux distribution. In Wireshark you can analyze the data there.
Obviously much more could be written about each of the tools and protocols above, and indeed, books have been written about each. However, here you have a short list of high-level steps to perform for passive Wi-Fi data sniffing, along with a complete set of the hardware and software you will need.
For potential future discussion is packet capture in a wired network, such as via Ethernet.
EPO Patent Information Conference
On September 14, 2017 January 8, 2018 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis, Europe, Search, Software
For the past few years I have enjoyed attending the European Patent Office's (EPO) annual Patent Information Conference, which is held in a different European city each year. In 2015 it was based in Copenhagen, and in 2016 it was held in Madrid. This year (2017) it is held in Sofia, Bulgaria. There are several training sessions along with discussion rounds covering a variety of topics, such as patent-related searches, freedom to operate assessments, patent analytics, patent asset monitoring, and of course patent information and evaluation tools. As described in an earlier post about European patents, as a US-based patent analyst I find it beneficial to continue to stay informed about the latest developments in European patent law and data. This annual conference provides me with the opportunity to learn, and I also have met many great patent professionals at these conference events. Additionally, there are dozens of excellent exhibitors showing off their latest patent information and analysis software and services.
Europe is my home away from home, and I love spending time there and exploring new cities, as well as learning from peers. This conference is also relatively inexpensive compared to most patent conferences in the US.
Please let me know if you plan to attend this year's (or any future year's) EPO Patent Information Conference, and I can plan to meet you for a chat.
European Patents
On September 12, 2017 January 8, 2018 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis, Europe, Resources, Software
In my patent analysis practice, I continue to see an increase in requests to review European (EP) patents. This is likely due to a variety of reasons, including case law decisions in the United States in recent years, along with the promise of a European Unified Patent Court (UPC). In any case, I find it advantageous as a US-based patent analyst to be familiar with European patent practice because there are many differences from US practice, and of course there are different resources available for European patent review.
For example, while Google Patents provides support for EP patents, there is additional information available from European Patent Office (EPO) websites such as Espacenet (technical information) and European Patent Register (legal information, like the USPTO's Public PAIR). And once a European patent is granted, it is currently enforced in each separate designated contracting state (nation) after validation procedures (such as providing language translations); renewal fees are also thereafter paid to each contracting state. This makes determining current status more difficult — one must determine in which nations the granted patent is enforceable (a topic for a future blog post).
With regard to European patents, the Chrome browser "Patent Claims Tree" extension has been updated to:
provide a link to both Espacenet and the European Patent Register for a given EP patent, such as when viewed in Google Patents
handle claims viewed in Espacenet
provide enhanced German claim text analysis
fix claims extraction for EP patents in Google Patents (based on updates to Google Patents)
Links to Espacenet and Register for EP patents.
Espacenet claims tree
Considering Kind Codes when Analyzing non-US Patents
On February 15, 2013 May 2, 2014 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis, Claim Charting, Resources, Search, Software
In my patent analysis work, I am sometimes asked to review patent documents from jurisdictions other than the US, such as from Europe (EP) and the United Kingdom (GB).
A common error I have encountered when analysts in the US look at patent documents from other jurisdictions is that they review the wrong version of a patent document, thereby wasting their own and their client's time. Counter to the USPTO's practice of separate pre-grant patent application publication and granted patent numbering schemes (11-digit and 7-digit, respectively), many other jurisdictions use the same number for both published patent applications and granted patents. The way that these other jurisdictions' patent offices (such as the EPO and UK IPO) represent the difference in the patent document identifier is through the use of a "kind-of-document code", which is a one- or two-character suffix that follows the patent document number — e.g., GB2172127A vs GB2172127B.
For another example, EP patent applications are represented with a trailing "A" kind code, while granted EP patents are represented with a trailing "B" kind code. For EP patent documents, an "A1" indicates a European patent application published with a European search report, and a "B1" indicates a "European patent specification (granted patent)". There are several other kind codes for each of the "A" and "B" kind code sets — for more details, see the EPO's kind code help page. The USPTO has its own comparable US kind code list, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) additionally has a comprehensive guide to patent kind codes.
The specific error that I have witnessed from a few other patent analysts is that they spend time reviewing the claim set of a published EP or GB patent application (i.e., kind code "A") instead of reviewing the claim set of the associated granted EP or GB patent (i.e., kind code "B"). Obviously analysis on an originally-filed or still-pending set of claims is likely to not be helpful for a client because the client wants to know how relevant the issued claims are, and the issued claims are very likely to represent some, if not many, modifications from the original claim set. The claims normally differ between these two, potentially substantially, so when analysts map or otherwise analyze "A" claims the work is probably incomplete and/or inaccurate. Part of the problem is that search tools such as Espacenet default to showing the "A" claims, even when the "B" version has been selected. To get to the "B" version of the claims, one must explicitly select such. The kind code B claims are only available in a PDF image at Espacenet and the UK IPO.
UPDATE: However, thanks to Google, this doesn't mean that I have to OCR them and/or type them in when filling out reviews. Google Patents has support for EP and WO patent documents, including the claims. Google Patents provides kind code B claims in a textual format for simple copy-and-paste, and the Patent Claims Tree tool for the Chrome browser will parse these textual claims and provide a claims tree.
See the example screen shot below showing selection of the "B" kind code of a particular granted GB patent GB2172127, with the "A" kind code claims displayed instead — note that the indication of this is rather subtle (source: http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/claims?CC=GB&NR=2172127B&KC=B&FT=D&ND=4&date=19881012&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP, retrieved Feb 15, 2013):
GB patent kind code "A" claims
Therefore, when performing patent analysis on non-US patents, it's best to understand and leverage the kind code to ensure that you are reviewing the appropriate set of claims.
On September 14, 2012 October 9, 2013 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis, Claim Charting, Search
Below are example technology areas in which I perform patent analysis.
Mobile Technologies:
Mobile devices, mobile user interface, location-based services, navigation guidance, mobile social networking, mobile advertisements, mobile messaging, smart cards, near field communication (NFC)
Web Applications:
HTML, XML, XSLT, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, MySQL, SQL, RSS/ATOM, AJAX, web services, web servers, web television, data visualization/reporting
Mobile Application Platforms:
Android, J2ME, BlackBerry, iOS, BREW
Data Communications:
IP, TCP, HTTP, UDP, Ethernet traffic analysis, DNS, data link control, packet switching, circuit switching, routing protocols, SIP
Messaging:
SMS, instant messaging, electronic mail, MMS
Wireless Communications:
3GPP (UMTS and LTE), 3GPP2, IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi)
cryptography, e-commerce
Embedded systems, RTOS, C, Java, Perl, Visual Basic, Object-Oriented Design
On August 17, 2010 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis
Because I work as both a patent practitioner and a software engineer, I subscribe to several email "newsletters" and RSS feeds pertaining to patent news and to general technology. Over the past few years I have read with some amusement the various news stories pertaining to the purported lunacy of patent protection (particularly so-called "software patents"), providing specific examples. I would be the first to acknowledge that there are indeed some crazy issued patents out there — one great place to find these is at FreePatentsOnline (link). Occasionally Gene Quinn, a patent attorney and blogger, writes about examples of humorous patents, such as these here. Note that none of those listed by Gene in the aforementioned post includes software.
Anyway, the problem with many of the posts by bloggers without a solid knowledge of the patent process is that these posts often include agitating titles that assumedly stir up those with anti-patent bents, but without just cause. The first and foremost mistake made in these articles is to state that someone has obtained a patent on something seemingly ludicrous, when in fact someone has only applied for a patent, but no patent has yet been granted. As readers of this article are likely aware, one can file a patent application on anything, whether or not the subject matter is patentable — thus the examination process, wherein a patent examiner skilled in the related art examines patent applications to determine patentability. For the patent examiner to grant patent protection to an invention, the invention in the associated patent application should, among other things, be directed to patentable subject matter, have utility, be novel, and not be obvious to one skilled in the art.
Another common mistake is to read solely an issued patent's title and/or abstract to try to glean the scope of the patent's protection. Claims define the breadth of the patent's scope, and can frankly often be difficult to understand by their very nature, usually including esoteric language that takes some effort to fully comprehend.
A less common error is to confuse a patent with a trademark, another form of intellectual property protection. The genesis of this post was an article I found on Slashdot proclaiming "Town Gets Patent On Being the Center of Europe". Of course as soon as I saw that headline, I suspected something was amiss — i.e., how would that be patentable subject matter?! Apparently the source of Slashdot's post was a Techdirt post, which does not include such an alarming title: "Patenting The Geophysical Center Of Europe?". It would appear that the Techdirt author also harbored some doubts about the legitimacy of this odd event. I doubt too many of Slashdot's readers made it this far (unfortunately), but I was happy to find this retort and adequate analysis by Michael Fötsch: "Patenting The Geophysical Center Of Europe?". Mike did his research, and discovered, of course, that the so-called "patent" was actually a trademark for the phrase "Center of Europe". As Mike duly notes:
So, what do we learn from this? Not much that we didn't already know, I'm afraid:
Wikipedia contains a lot of dubious information.
Twitter is a good place to spread dubious information of all sorts.
Politic[i]ans will happily repeat anything they find on Wikipedia.
Techdirt isn't afraid to do the same. But when they do, they add a question mark to the headline to cover their bases. 😉
Bilski's Impact
On May 4, 2010 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis
Peter Zura's 271 Patent Blog relates an article detailing decisions in the Federal Circuit and in district courts in cases where patents were challenged on meeting the section 101 requirement. Most of the patents in these cases were found invalid. Now we wait for the Supreme Court decision on Bilski…
The blog post is available here: [LINK]
How has the CAFC's Bilski decision impacted your patent/invention analysis and/or drafting?
Small Business Center Patent Counseling
On April 23, 2010 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis, Patent Management, Search
This week I joined the Professional Services Office team at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College's Small Business Center Incubator. Once per month I provide free one hour counseling sessions to clients of the Small Business Center to help these clients understand what their options are with regard to obtaining patent protection for their inventions.
Clearance Search Review
On March 24, 2010 March 24, 2010 By The Patent AnalystIn Analysis, Search
As a follow-up from a previous post on types of patent searches [Link], this post discusses some techniques for reviewing patent documents (both patents and patent applications) for potential relevance for a given product, and the post provides some choices for action taken in case a patent document is deemed relevant based on the review.
A preliminary review of a given patent document helps to form an initial interpretation of what the scope of the claims is. Intrinsic evidence is used to determine the claim meaning, with this type of evidence including e.g., the specification and listed embodiments, the document's prosecution history, cited prior art, other claims within the patent document, associated patent litigation, and associated parent/sibling/foreign filings. The ordinary meaning of each claim is construed from the perspective of a person having ordinary skill in the art (PHOSITA) for the time period of the invention. However, an inventor in the patent document specification can expressly define terms differently than their ordinary meaning, and the specification may explicitly disclaim some embodiments. Of course means-plus-function claims are limited the structures and equivalents contained within the spec. Also, during patent prosecution the patent owner can surrender claim scope.
Extrinsic evidence such as a dictionary definition or expert testimony, or even inventor testimony, can be used to determine the claim construction if it does not contradict the intrinsic evidence. The proper construction is weighed heavily toward the intrinsic evidence such as those listed in the paragraph above.
If a patent document under review seems potentially relevant to a given product (planned or existing), then there are various options that could be entertained, each with its own associated trade-offs:
Performing a workaround so as to avoid possible infringement, if such a workaround is feasible. Any workaround considered should be analyzed to ascertain its impact on the product — its impact on cost, quality, and timeliness of the product should not be more detrimental than other possible routes, such as obtaining a license. Also, it is often advisable to obtain a written opinion from external patent counsel on the non-infringement of the workaround on the patent.
Forgoing the product altogether.
Licensing the patented invention from the patent owner, whether through monetary payment, cross-licensing of patents, etc.
Obtaining an opinion from external patent counsel of prior art anticipation or obviousness of the patent. This type of opinion is more difficult to obtain, as in this case every claim needs to be shown to be invalid. Additionally, this type of opinion is certainly not rock solid, as the patentee can render the opinion moot such as through claim modification in a reexamination (e.g., adding an element to claims to avoid invalidity finding by examiner).
Obtaining an opinion from external patent counsel of non-infringement. This type of opinion only has to show non-infringement of the independent claims, as a product that does not infringe independent claims cannot infringe the dependent claims.
Taking a chance and doing nothing. The risks here are obvious, as there could be problems with "willful infringement". Consider also that a given patent may not be in force due to a missed maintenance fee, but one needs to be careful here since patents can be revived.
None of these decisions can be taken lightly, and due consideration should be given to each. The above list is not meant to be exhaustive, as there are further considerations that can made in this situation. Additional suggestions are welcomed from readers.