Increased red cell distribution width levels in children with seasonal allergic conjunctivitis

Seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (SAC) is an inflammatory disease of the conjunctiva. Red cell distribution width (RDW) is a widely accepted inflammatory marker. We aimed to investigate whether RDW level is associated with the development of SAC in pediatric population.

The present study consisted of 90 subjects (45 children with SAC and 45 age- and sex-matched healthy children). The demographic findings, complete blood count parameters including RDW and laboratory parameters, were evaluated.

The mean RDW levels were significantly higher in children with SAC compared to the control group (14.02 ± 0.82 vs. 13.26 ± 0.64%, respectively, p < 0.001). In receiver operating characteristic analysis, the area under the curve for RDW for predicting SAC was 0.786, and a RDW value of 13.45 or higher predicted SAC with a sensitivity of 75.6% and specificity of 65%.

Our study suggests that elevated RDW levels are significantly associated with SAC in pediatric population, which may imply a possible role of increased inflammatory status and oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of SAC.