Risk Factors Associated with Iron Deficiency Among Children Admitted to Paediatric Emergency Unit in Erbil, Iraq

Nazdar Ezzaddin Rasheed

doi:10.15218/zjms.2010.032

Authors

Nazdar Ezzaddin Rasheed M.sc.Pediatric ,Assistant lecturer in Paediatric Department, College of Medicine, Hawler Medical University.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15218/zjms.2010.032

Keywords:

iron deficiency, preschool children, risk factors

Abstract

Background and objective: Iron deficiency is the most prevalent and common micronutrient deficiency in the developing world today. The aim is to determine the iron status among 1-5 years old children admitted to emergency department for different reasons and to determine the risk factors associated with iron deficiency in these children.

Methods: a cross sectional study was carried out on a total of 106 children aged 1-5 years attended the emergency department of Raparin teaching hospital for children in Erbil from 16^th of May to 16^th of August 2007 were invited to participate in the study, parent were interviewed for potential risk factors of iron deficiency, blood were taken for analysis of hemoglobin, serum iron, total iron binding capacity and transferrin saturation after a verbal consent. Iron deficiency was defined as serum iron <50 microgram/dl and/or transferrin saturation (TS)<16%.

Results: iron deficiency was noted in 51.9% and 48.1% according to serum iron and transferrin saturation respectively. Male have more risk to have lower TS<16% as compared with female ( OR 0.400, 95% CI 0.182-0.879). Age and tea ingestion were significant independent predictor of iron deficiency, family income associated significantly with low serum iron while pica, frequency of meat ingestion, number of sibling and weight percentile have non significant relation with neither low serum iron nor low transferrin saturation

Conclusion: iron deficiency is important health problem in this population of children, prevalence of iron deficiency found in 1-2 year age group in this study was alarming, this suggest the need for greater efforts of prevention.

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