Incidence of iron deficiency anemia among the children with febrile seizures.

Abstract

Objective: To determine frequency of iron deficiency anemia among the children having febrile seizures. Study Design: Descriptive Cross Sectional study. Setting: Pediatric Unit Allama Iqbal Memorial Teaching Hospital Sialkot. Period: September 2020 to February 2021. Material & Methods: Total 70 children were studied with age six months to 10 years with either gender presenting with febrile seizures. All data of the patients was documented including demographic data like age, gender, residential area, educational status, socioeconomic status and clinical findings at the time of presentation like fever, fits and duration of symptoms etc. Blood hemoglobin and ferritin level were tested of each patient to evaluate iron deficiency anemia. Results: There were 65.7% male and 34.3% female cases in this study. Age range of the patients was 6 months to 10 years with mean age of 4.36 ± 2.71 years. Most of the children (60%) were below three years of age. Mostly children belonged to low and middle socioeconomic status with the frequency of 42.8% and 45.7% respectively. Iron deficiency anemia was found in 38.6% cases. Majority of the mothers were illiterate (65%). There were 44.3% cases from rural areas and 55.7% from urban area. Conclusion:  Iron deficiency anemia is a common problem among children with febrile seizures, younger than 03 years and belonging to rural areas. Illiterate mothers, is an important risk factor of iron deficiency anemia in their children.