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Abstract
Background: Anemia
among children represents a major public
health problem all over the world, and
particularly in developing countries.
The aim of this study was to determine
the magnitude of anemia in general, and
microcytic hypochromic anemia in particular,
among Saudi children aged 6 months to
5 years of age in Muhayel City and also
to compare the prevalence according to
children's age and gender.
Subjects and
Methods: This was a retrospective
study to explore the magnitude of anemia
among children in Muhayel City, Aseer
region which is located in the southwestern
region of Saudi Arabia. The study was
done in a government hospital. The study
population included all children aged
6 months to 59 months seen in the emergency
room (ER) and who underwent sampling for
complete blood count for whatever the
reason. Hemoglobin level (Hb), mean corpuscular
volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin
(MCH) were taken.
Results: The
study included 1,033 children aged between
6 and 59 months with a mean of 27.81±13.9
months. More than half of them were males
683 (66.1%). The prevalence of anemia
was 29.3%; mostly mild 254 (24.6%) or
moderate 48 (4.6%). Severe anemia was
observed only in 1 child representing
0.1% of the sample. Microcytic hypochromic
anemia was observed among 36.0% of the
study sample, based on the WHO cut of
levels of MCV and MCH.
Conclusion: Anemia, particularly
microcytic hypochromic anemia is relatively
still a public health problem among children
in Saudi Arabia, despite the improvement
in socio-economic status. Further research
is recommended for deep investigation
of the underlying factors, particularly
nutritional habits.
Key words:
anemia, microcytic, hypochromic, preschool,
Saudi Arabia
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