[Plasma vitamin A levels in deprived children with pneumonia during the acute phase and after recovery].
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to examine the plasma retinol of children in the acute phase of pneumonia and after recovery and to investigate the association between plasma levels of retinol after recovery with socioeconomic variables, nutritional status and severity of pneumonia.


METHODS
A prospective cohort study which included 40 low-income hospitalized children with pneumonia, aged 6 months to 5 years. We evaluated: plasma retinol level during the acute phase and after recovery, years of schooling of the head of the family, per capita income, birth weight, nutritional status, hemoglobin levels and severity of pneumonia.


RESULTS
Mean plasma retinol levels were significantly higher after recovery than during the acute phase of infection (1.4+/-0.6 vs. 1.7+/-0.6 micromol/l, p = 0.03). The frequency of inadequate plasma retinol levels (< 1.05 micromol/l) was 32.5 and 17.5% for the acute phase and after recovery, respectively. There were no statistically significant associations between plasma retinol deficiency and the clinical and epidemiological variables studied. More severe pneumonia was observed in 30/40 (75%) of the patients. There was no statistically significant association between plasma retinol inadequacy after recovery and severity of pneumonia (4/30 - 13.3% vs. 3/10 - 30.0%, p = 0.34).


CONCLUSIONS
Serum retinol levels were significantly higher after recovery than during the acute phase of pneumonia. There was no statistically significant association between the deficiency of serum retinol and the clinical and epidemiological variables studied.
da Silva
Rosangela
R
Departamento de Pediatria, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Escola Paulista de Medicina (UNIFESP/EPM), São Paulo, SP.
Lopes
Emílio
E
Sarni
Roseli Oselka Saccardo
RO
Taddei
José Augusto de Aguiar Carrazedo
JA
D000208:Acute Disease; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009752:Nutritional Status; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000097:blood*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000097:blood*
D014801:Vitamin A