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Do cerebral blood flow velocities change in iron deficiency anemia?
Didem Aliefendioglu1, Sevda Yilmaz, Emine Dibek Misirlioglu
1Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Kirikkale University, Kirikkale, Turkey. didem.aliefendioglu@gmail.com
Insights
Iron deficiency anemia in infants is linked to altered brain blood flow. Lower hemoglobin levels correlate with increased cerebral blood flow velocities, particularly in the posterior cerebral artery.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Neurology
- Hematology
Background:
- Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in infants is associated with impaired neurodevelopment.
- Cerebral blood flow (CBF) regulation may be affected by IDA.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate cerebral blood flow velocity in infants diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia.
- To explore the relationship between hemoglobin levels and CBF parameters in affected infants.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 36 infants (6-36 months) with IDA was divided into two groups based on hemoglobin (Hb) levels.
- Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography was used to measure peak-systolic velocity (PSV) and end-diastolic velocity (EDV) in anterior, middle, and posterior cerebral arteries.
Main Results:
- Group 1 (Hb < 10 g/dL) exhibited significantly higher EDV in anterior and middle cerebral arteries compared to Group 2 (10 ≤ Hb ≤ 11 g/dL).
- Both PSV and EDV were significantly different between groups in the posterior cerebral artery.
- Significant negative correlations were found between Hb levels and PSV/EDV in the posterior cerebral artery.
Conclusions:
- Infants with IDA show altered cerebral blood flow velocities, with more pronounced changes in those with lower Hb levels.
- Increased CBF velocities in IDA may result from compensatory mechanisms like increased cardiac output or decreased vascular resistance.
- Findings suggest potential cerebrovascular effects of IDA in early childhood.
Abstract:
Infants with iron deficiency had lower scores when tested for mental and motor development than their peers with better iron status. The aim of this study was to examine cerebral blood flow velocity in infants with iron deficiency anemia. Thirty-six infants (27 male, 9 female) with iron deficiency anemia, aged 6 to 36 months were divided into 2 groups according to the hemoglobin (Hb) values [group 1 (n=23) Hb<10 g/dL and group 2 (n=13) 11 >Hb> or =10 g/dL]. In anterior and middle cerebral arteries only end-diastolic velocity (EDV) was increased in group 1 as compared with group 2 (P=0.05 and P=0.016, respectively), whereas in posterior cerebral artery both EDV and peak-systolic velocity were different between the groups (P=0.024 and P=0.004). Both peak-systolic velocity and EDV showed significant correlation with Hb level in the posterior cerebral artery (r=-0.38, P=0.023 and r=-0.35, P=0.037) but not in the anterior and middle cerebral arteries. Increased cerebral blood flow velocities in children with lower Hb values may be due to increased cardiac output, decreased vascular resistivity caused by anemia.
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