Abstract |
Although anemia in preschool children is most often attributed to iron deficiency, other nutritional, infectious, and genetic contributors are rarely concurrently measured. In a population-based, cross-sectional survey of 858 children 6-35 months of age in western Kenya, we measured hemoglobin, malaria, inflammation, sickle cell, α- thalassemia, iron deficiency, vitamin A deficiency, anthropometry, and socio-demographic characteristics. Anemia (Hb < 11 g/dL) and severe anemia ( Hb < 7 g/dL) prevalence ratios (PRs) for each exposure were determined using multivariable modeling. Anemia (71.8%) and severe anemia (8.4%) were common. Characteristics most strongly associated with anemia were malaria (PR: 1.7; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.5-1.9), iron deficiency (1.3; 1.2-1.4), and homozygous α- thalassemia (1.3; 1.1-1.4). Characteristics associated with severe anemia were malaria (10.2; 3.5-29.3), inflammation (6.7; 2.3-19.4), and stunting (1.6; 1.0-2.4). Overall 16.8% of anemia cases were associated with malaria, 8.3% with iron deficiency, and 6.1% with inflammation. Interventions should address malaria, iron deficiency, and non-malarial infections to decrease the burden of anemia in this population.
|
Authors | Eric M Foote, Kevin M Sullivan, Laird J Ruth, Jared Oremo, Ibrahim Sadumah, Thomas N Williams, Parminder S Suchdev |
Journal | The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene
(Am J Trop Med Hyg)
Vol. 88
Issue 4
Pg. 757-64
(Apr 2013)
ISSN: 1476-1645 [Electronic] United States |
PMID | 23382166
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.)
|
Topics |
- Anemia
(epidemiology, etiology)
- Anemia, Iron-Deficiency
(diagnosis)
- Child, Preschool
- Confidence Intervals
- Cross-Sectional Studies
- Female
- Humans
- Infant
- Inflammation
(complications)
- Kenya
(epidemiology)
- Malaria
(complications, parasitology)
- Male
- Multivariate Analysis
- Nutritional Status
- Prevalence
- Rural Population
- Severity of Illness Index
- Socioeconomic Factors
- alpha-Thalassemia
(complications)
|