Anemia and Iron Deficiency among Schoolchildren in the Aral Sea Region, Kazakhstan

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence of anemia and iron deficiency among schoolchildren in the Aral Sea region of Kazakhstan and to determine the various factors associated with anemia in this population. We conducted a cross-sectional study of randomly selected schoolchildren. Blood samples were collected for measuring hemoglobin (Hb), serum ferritin (SF), total iron binding capacity (TIBC), and other hematological indices, and subjects were screened for anemia and iron deficiency. Associations between Hb concentration and SF, TIBC, anthropometric, and socioeconomic data were evaluated using regression analysis. The prevalence of anemia was 49.8 per cent although levels were mostly mild. Twenty-two per cent of the children were iron depleted (SF < 12 microg/l). Of the anemic children, 32.4 per cent were found to have iron deficiency anemia (anemia with SF < 12 microg/l). There were significant positive correlations between the levels of Hb and SF, but a negative correlation with serum TIBC. Age, mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and SF were found to be significantly related to Hb by stepwise multiple regression analysis. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that anemia was independently related to living district, education of father, and child's age. The results suggest that iron deficiency is an important determinant of anemia in this population; however, whole anemia cannot be solely explained by iron deficiency. Further studies are needed for consideration of micronutrients status, parasite infestation, hereditary disorders, and exposure to environmental pollutants.

Prevalence of iron deficiency among schoolchildren of different socio-economic status in urban Turkey

“…To a further extent, the prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia ranged from 3.2 to 14.2% for children and adolescents of urban and rural residence, in south and east regions of the country (Koc et al, 2000;Kilinc et al, 2002). Likewise, the corresponding frequencies of iron deficiency and iron deficiency anaemia among schoolchildren of other developing countries have been reported to vary from 16.1 to 21.6% (Al-Othaimeen et al, 1999;Ahmed et al, 2000;Hashizume et al, 2003) and from 8.6 to 14.2% (Ahmed et al, 2000;Hashizume et al, 2003), respectively. In the present study, the percentage observed for iron deficiency (19.1%) was within the ranges reported not only for Turkey but for other countries as well.…”

“…SES, either defined by the type of school attended (ie public vs private), by the region of residence (ie rural vs urban) or by the level of parental education (primary school vs University), has been pointed out by many investigators, as an important determinant of the elevated prevalence of iron deficiency and iron deficiency anaemia among the less privileged school-aged children in developing countries (Soekarjo et al, 2001;Abalkhail & Shawky, 2002;Kilinc et al, 2002;Musaiger, 2002;Hashizume et al, 2003). Furthermore, the higher incidence of iron deficiency reported for adolescent schoolgirls, compared to boys (Tatala et al, 1998;Abalkhail & Shawky, 2002;Kilinc et al, 2002;Musaiger, 2002;Hashizume et al, 2004), shows that female gender exerts an extra effect on the prevalence of this medical condition, probably due to accessional iron losses through menstruation.…”

“…Iron deficiency is probably the most prevalent and common micronutrient deficiency in the developing world today (Tatala et al, 1998;Asobayire et al, 2001;Abalkhail & Shawky, 2002;Hashizume et al, 2003). The detrimental public health effects of iron deficiency include anaemia, decreased intellectual and work performance as well as functional alterations of the small bowel (Oski, 1993).…”

Prevalencia y factores sociodemográficos asociados a la deficiencia de ferritina en niños de Colombia, 2010

“…Por esa razón, las clasificaciones étnicas presentadas a lo largo de este trabajo se restringieron a tres grupos. Este hallazgo es consistente con los resultados de otros estudios realizados en países menos desarrollados como Malasia (18) o Kazajistán (19) . Ambos estudios mostraron, que la deficiencia de ferritina se asocia a situaciones de pobreza, de hacinamiento y a la ausencia de servicios públicos, lo que hace más vulnerables a los niños.…”

Prevalence of iron deficiency and its association with vitamin A deficiency in preschool children

“…O mesmo foi observado em relação à DVA: todos os casos identificados na população foram subclínicos, pois nenhuma criança apresentava sinais de xeroftalmia 3 . Porém, muitos trabalhos da literatura que estudaram populações com elevadas prevalências de CF encontraram, também, elevadas prevalências de anemia 4,11,20,21 . A provável explicação dessa observação neste estudo está no fato de as crianças estudadas pertencerem à faixa de idade pré-escolar, sendo, portanto, de uma faixa etária de menor risco para a anemia ferropriva quando comparada com os lactentes.…”