فقر آهن و عوامل مرتبط با آن در كودكان 1 تا 6 ساله تحت پوشش مراكز بهداشتي درماني شهرستان جهرم در سال 1385

A Study on the occurrence of Iron deficiency anemia in 1-6 year old children referring to health care centers in Jahrom, 1385

Abstract Introduction: Childrenʹs iron deficiency anemia is the most common nutritional problem; it plays an important role in reducing the childʹs scientific and practical abilities. This study aims at reviewing the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia in 1 to 6 year old children referring to the city health care centers in Jahrom. Material and Methods: This is a descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study using the multistage sampling method, conducted on 380 children aged 1-6 years in Jahrom city. A checklist was used to colleci: demographic data, information on malnutrition, exposure to disease, hemoglobin, iron free and serum iron band in order to determine the frequency and prevalence of the problem. Results: Of the 380 children studied, 212 (55.8%) were male and the rest were girls. The mean age of the children was 33.7 months. 94 % of them weighed 3200 g at birth. Moreover, 46.3% of the children suffered from anemia and 18.7% were iron deficient. The whole 18.2% had iron deficiency anemia. 60 % of the patients with iron deficency anemia were aged one year and 21.7% were two years old and no iron deficiency anemia was seen in 6 years of age (p=0/00). Although anemia was more common in girls than boys, no significant difference of iron deficiency anemia was found in both sexes (18.4 versus 17.9). 11.6% of the patients were under the 3rd percentile growth curve (P=0.031). Conclusion: Since 60% of the patients with iron deficiency anemia were aged one to two years, so there is a need to start and continue iron supplementation in this age group.