title: The hemoglobin values of Korean adolescents show distinctive characteristics in comparison to those of Caucasians and African Americans.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hematologic reference values vary by ethnicity. We aimed to determine reference values of hemoglobin (Hb) for Korean adolescents.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using data from the 5th Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), we obtained reference values for Hb in adolescents aged 10-20 years.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 2,526 subjects recruited, 330 were excluded due to chronic diseases (9 congenital heart disease, 6 epilepsy, and 1 thyroid disease) or abnormal laboratory values (253 subjects with Fe/TIBC <16%, 103 subjects with MCV <80 fl). Accordingly, data from 2,196 subjects (male = 1,196 and female = 1,000) were analyzed and age- and gender-stratified means and percentile values of Hb were obtained. Pertinent findings observed in the current study were: (i) Hb levels in Korean male were similar to those of non-Hispanic Caucasians; (ii) Hb values in females were similar to those of non-Hispanic Caucasians until age of 15, and thereafter were slightly lower. Prevalence of anemia according to WHO criteria and our own criteria (Hb levels <2 standard deviations of age- and gender-specific values) in total sample was 3.5% (88/2,526) and 3.8% (97/2,526), respectively. Anemia was more prevalent in female in comparison with male (6.5% vs. 1.0%, P < 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results could be used as a national reference standard to correctly classify a large population sample. Further studies are necessary to determine reference Hb values for children younger than 10 years and identify genetic variations associated with distinctive characteristics observed in this study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Korea Cancer Center Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jung Sub
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Ju-Hee
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Seo
authors.forename: Dong Ho
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jun Ah
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D000367:Age Factors; D000740:Anemia / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D044466:Asian People; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D012737:Sex Factors; D044465:White People
chemical_list: D006454:Hemoglobins
keywords: Korean; adolescents; anemia; children; hemoglobin; reference