| Pronunciation | per-NISH-us uh-NEE-mee-uh |
| Definition | A type of megaloblastic anemia (a disorder in which red blood cells are larger than normal, immature, and few in number, which reduces the amount of oxygen that can be carried by the blood to the body’s tissues). It is most often caused by an inability to make enough intrinsic factor (a protein made by the stomach and needed to absorb vitamin B12 in the intestine). Vitamin B12 is necessary to make red blood cells. |
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