Anaemia common among kids

Anaemia is common among children, particularly boys and those who are younger or underweight, reports a recent study from the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR).

Researchers conducted a cross-sectional analysis on a nationally representative sample of 5,067 children (51.7 percent boys) aged 6–59 months. Anaemia was identified through haemoglobin testing, and levels below 11.0 g/dL were considered anaemic.

The mean haemoglobin level in the study sample was 11.09±1.28 g/dL, and the resulting prevalence rate of anaemia was 43.0 percent. Anaemia was more common among children aged 6–11 months, and among those who had had diarrhoea and fever in the last 2 weeks.

Multilevel binary logistic regression analysis showed that boys were 16-percent more likely to have anaemia than girls (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.16, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.01–1.34). Children who were underweight saw a 30-percent increase in the risk of anaemia (adjusted OR, 1.30, 95 percent CI, 1.09–1.55).

On the other hand, older children were significantly protected against anaemia. Relative to the 6–11-month age group, those who were 12–23 (adjusted OR, 0.50, 95 percent CI, 0.38–0.65), 24–35 (adjusted OR, 0.18, 95 percent CI, 0.14–0.23), 36–47 (adjusted OR, 0.15, 95 percent CI, 0.11–0.20), and 48–59 (adjusted OR, 0.12, 95 percent CI, 0.09–0.16) months of age were less likely to have anaemia.

At the household level, having a better educated head of household was also a significant protective factor against anaemia in children.

“[T]o improve the health and well-being of anaemic children aged <5 years in the Lao PDR, it is necessary to focus strongly on improving the nutritional status of the children, and prevention of childhood anaemia should be considered as a major priority of public health interventions,” the researchers said.