title: [Prevalence of anemia, iron and folate deficiency in children 7 years smaller. Costa Rica, 1996].
abstract: In 1996, were studied in Costa Rica 961 children with ages between one and six years, with representation for metropolitan, urban and rural zones of the country. The classification approaches applied were emitted by the Pan-American Health Organization and the World Health Organization. The preschooler population presented in the national environment a prevalence of anemia of 26.3% (children from 1 to 4 years with hemoglobin < 11.0 g/dL and those from 5 to 6 years old with hemoglobin < 12.0 g/dL). The prevalence of Iron depletion (Ferritin < 12 ng/mL) and iron deficiency (Ferritin < 24 ng/mL) were 24.4% and 53.8%, respectively. The folate deficiency (< 6.0 ng/mL) was 11.4%. The iron deficiency was higher in children smaller than 4 years, being the maximum deficiency in the 1 year-old (75%). More than 40% of the preschool children presented sub-clinical deficiency of iron; of them, 10% showed severe deficiency of iron without presence of anemia. The children from the rural area presented the highest prevalence of anemia and iron depletion, while the metropolitan area met more frequency with iron deficiency. The nutritional anemias still constitute a moderate problem of public health in Costa Rica. The main cause is iron deficiency, associated in small proportion with folate deficiency and other factors associated with the erythropoiesis.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Costarricense de Investigación y Enseñanza en Nutrición y Salud Inciensa, Costa Rica.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cunningham
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ascencio
mesh_terms: D000740:Anemia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D018798:Anemia, Iron-Deficiency / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003364:Costa Rica / Q000453:epidemiology; D005494:Folic Acid Deficiency / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D015995:Prevalence; D012423:Rural Health; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014504:Urban Health
vernacular_title: Prevalencia de anemia, deficiencia de hierro y folatos en niños menores de siete años. Costa Rica, 1996.