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Published on: May 4, 2020
Iron therapy substantially restores qEEG maturational lag among iron-deficient anemic infants
Gloria A Otero1, Thalía Fernández2, F Bernardo Pliego-Rivero1
1a Facultad de Medicina , Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México , Toluca , México.
Insights
Iron-deficiency anemia (IDA) in infants is linked to delayed central nervous system (CNS) maturation, indicated by altered brainwave patterns. Iron supplementation improved these patterns, suggesting IDA is a significant risk factor for developmental lag.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pediatrics
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is a prevalent condition in infants.
- Assessing the impact of IDA on early central nervous system (CNS) development is crucial for timely intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effects of IDA on CNS maturation in infants during their first year of life using quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG).
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving 25 infants with IDA and 25 age- and gender-matched healthy controls.
- Electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings were analyzed using fast Fourier transform to obtain absolute power (AP) and relative power (RP) qEEG measures.
- Non-parametric multivariate permutation tests (NPT) were used to compare qEEG data between groups and before/after iron supplementation.
Main Results:
- Infants with IDA exhibited significantly altered qEEG patterns, characterized by increased slow frequency bands (delta, theta) and decreased fast frequency bands (alpha).
- Specifically, IDA infants showed higher alpha AP and RP, and less theta AP, delta RP, and theta RP compared to controls.
- Following iron supplementation, qEEG measures in the IDA group showed significant improvements, with increased alpha power and decreased theta and delta power, approaching normal values.
Conclusions:
- IDA significantly impacts CNS maturation, leading to measurable delays in brain development as evidenced by qEEG alterations.
- Iron supplementation therapy effectively reverses these qEEG changes, highlighting the critical role of iron in early neurological development.
- IDA is identified as a substantial risk factor for delayed CNS maturation in infants.
Objective:
To use quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) to assess the impact of iron-deficiency anemia on central nervous system maturation in the first year of life.
Method:
Twenty-five infants (3-12 months old) presenting ferropenic anemia (IDA) and 25 healthy controls (CTL1), matched by age/gender with the former, were studied in two stages. Electroencephalogram during spontaneous sleep was recorded from all participants; the fast Fourier transform was calculated to obtain absolute power (AP) and relative power (RP) qEEG measures. In the first stage, a qEEG comparison between CTL1 and IDA was performed. Second stage consisted in comparing qEEG of the IDA infants before and after supplementation with iron (IDA-IS group), and comparing qEEG of the IDA-IS group with another control age-matched group (CTL2). Non-parametric multivariate permutation tests (NPT) were applied to assess differences between CTL1 and IDA groups, as well as IDA vs. IDA-IS, and IDA-IS vs. CTL2.
Results:
More power in slow frequency bands and less power in fast frequency bands in 64% of IDA babies were observed. NPT evinced higher alpha AP and RP (P < 0.001), less theta AP, and less delta and theta RP in CTL1 than in IDA. After iron-restoration therapy, alpha AP and RP increased while theta AP and theta and delta RP decreased, reaching almost normal values.
Discussion:
This work reveals CNS developmental delay through the study of qEEG (less rapid and more slow frequencies) which recovered significantly with iron supplementation. It is concluded that IDA constitutes a high risk factor for a lag of CNS maturation.
