title: Relationship between deficiencies in vitamin A and E and occurrence of infectious diseases among children.
abstract: To investigate the relationship between vitamin A deficiency (VAD), vitamin E deficiency (VED) and infectious diseases.
  
  
  
  We chose 684 cases of healthy children age 5 months-12 years from our hospital, measured their VA, VE from vein under the light proof condition with high-pressure liquid chromatography. Thereafter, the children who get the acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) or diarrhea two weeks later were registered.
  
  
  
  After the two weeks trial (N=684 cases), the VA level of children with ARI was lower than that of children without ARI (0.23±0.02 mg/ml/0.33±0.01 mg/ml), p<0.05. Moreover, the VE level of children with ARI was significantly lower than that of children without ARI (p<0.05). Most interestingly, the proportion of children with diarrhea accompanied with decreased VA level in serum was higher than that of children without diarrhea, indicating that VA level <0.2 mg/L more easily affected acute respiratory tract infection.
  
  
  
  We were able to demonstrate that Children who presented vitamin A deficiency were easier to get the acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) and diarrhea. Children who presented vitamin E deficiency were easier to get the acute respiratory tract infection (ARI). Vitamin A and vitamin E deficiencies are one of the important factors related to occurrences of acute infectious diseases in children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Daqing Longnan Hospital, Daqing, Heilongjiang, China. Charming_lady@163.com.
authors.forename: Y-J
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.forename: Q-L
authors.initials: QL
authors.lastname: Niu
authors.forename: X-L
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: X-Z
authors.initials: XZ
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: W-W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: X-J
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D002648:Child; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003967:Diarrhea; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000097:blood; D014802:Vitamin A Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014811:Vitamin E Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D014801:Vitamin A