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A Point-of-Care Method with Integrated Decision Support Tool to Estimate Anemia at Population Level
Published on: January 19, 2024
[Iron deficiency anemia in infants. Preliminary development results at five years]
Henedina Antunes1, Sónia Gonçalves, A Teixeira-Pinto
1Hospital de São Marcos, Departamento de Psicologia, Universidade do Minho, Braga.
Insights
Early treatment for iron-deficiency anemia (IDA) in infants may prevent long-term developmental delays. This study found no significant global development differences at age five in children treated for mild IDA in infancy.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Nutritional Anemia
Context:
- Iron-deficiency anemia (IDA) in infancy is linked to developmental delays in prior research, predominantly from developing countries.
- This study investigates the long-term developmental outcomes of children diagnosed with IDA at 9 months of age.
Purpose:
- To evaluate the neurodevelopmental status at age five of children previously diagnosed with iron-deficiency anemia at nine months of age.
- To determine if early treatment for mild IDA impacts global development by age five.
Summary:
- A cohort of 27 children with IDA at 9 months and 28 non-anemic controls were followed until age five.
- Children diagnosed with IDA received iron treatment. At five years, all children were assessed for motor and cognitive development using Griffith's test.
- No significant differences were observed in general, locomotor, personal-social, hearing-speech, hand-eye, performance, or practical reasoning scores between the groups at age five.
Impact:
- The findings suggest that early and effective treatment for mild iron-deficiency anemia in infancy may mitigate potential negative impacts on global development in a developed region.
- This research supports the importance of timely intervention for IDA to ensure optimal child development.
Introduction:
Research, mostly conducted in developing countries, have suggested short and long term developmental delay in children who had iron-deficiency anemia (IDA) in their early life. This study aims to evaluate the development of 5-years old children who were diagnosed IDA at 9 months of age.
Methods:
27 children with IDA diagnosed at 9 months of age and 28 non-anemic controls were followed-up until they were 5 years old. At 9 months of age and at 5 years of age, blood samples were collected for blood count, iron, transferrin and ferritin. Children with hemoglobin < 110 g/l and ferritin < 12 ng/ml were diagnosed with IDA and received iron treatment for IDA correction. C Reactive Protein and antibody to hepatitis A virus were also studied at 5 years of age. At this age, children's motor and cognitive development were accessed using Griffith's test.
Results:
At 9 months of age, IDA children had [mean (SD)] 102.5 g/ l (5.9) g/l of hemoglobin and 5.6 ng/l (3.1) ng/ml of ferritin. At 5 years of age all children were healthy and without anemia. One child had positive antibody to hepatitis A virus. The results of Griffith's test at five years--anemic/non-anemic at 9 months of age. The mean (sd)-p: general coefficient--100.8 (6.6)/99.5 (7.1)-0.48; locomotor 110.2 (6.9)/109.3 (6.5)-0.62; personal-social--99.1 (11.4)/95.7(11.6)-0.28; hearing-speech--93.8 (9.1)/95.3 (13.7)-0.64; hand-eye--98.2 (13.2)/99.1 (14.3)-0.79; performance--97.5 (17.6)/96.9 (13.6)-0.88; practical reasoning--89.8 (9.1)/86.3(7.1)-0.21.
Conclusions:
As only one child had positive antibody to hepatitis A virus, the study population may be considered as belonging to a developed region. These results suggest that, at least in developed regions, infants who receive an early treatment for their mild IDA may not be affected in global development at the age of five.
