Prevalence and predictors of iron deficiency anaemia among children with sickle cell disease in Dodoma, Tanzania: a cross-sectional study

• Published in: BMC public health Vol. 24; no. 1; p. 1026
• Main Authors: Bossy, Asha O, Yahaya, James J, Jumanne, Shakilu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 12.04.2024; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Age; Anaemia; Anemia; Anemia, Iron-Deficiency - diagnosis; Anemia, Iron-Deficiency - epidemiology; Anemia, Sickle Cell - complications; Anemia, Sickle Cell - epidemiology; Births; Blood; Blood transfusion; Caregivers; Child; Children; Clinics; Complications and side effects; Cross-Sectional Studies; Data collection; Deficiency diseases; Demographic aspects; Developing countries; Dyspnea; Families & family life; Family income; Ferritin; Hemoglobin; Hospitals; Humans; Infant; Iron; Iron deficiency; Iron deficiency anaemia; Iron deficiency anemia; LDCs; Meat; Multivariate analysis; Nutrient deficiency; Parasites; Patients; Predictors; Prevalence; Regression analysis; Risk factors; Sample size; Serum; Sickle cell anemia; Sickle cell disease; Sociodemographics; Tanzania - epidemiology; Tanzania; United States > US; Africa; India; Sickle cell disease; Iron deficiency anaemia; Predictors
• ISSN: 1471-2458; 1471-2458
• DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-18438-5

Patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) are prone to iron profile derangements. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) and their predictors among children with SCD aged between 6 months and 14 years. Assessment of the prevalence of IDA and its predictors helps to understand ways of alleviating the magnitude of the problem so as to prevent possible complications such as shortness of breath and chest pain. This was a cross-sectional analytical hospital-based study which included 174 patients with SCD attending SCD clinics at St. Gema hospital and Dodoma regional referral hospital in Dodoma city from October 2020 to March 2021. The cut-off points for detection of IDA was serum ferritin level < 30 µg/L and low mean corpuscular volume (MCV) for age. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 25.0. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the predictors of IDA. P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. The prevalence of IDA in this study was (16.1%, n = 28). Family income of less than 70,000/= TZS/month (AOR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.07-2.49, p = 0.023), being transfused with blood less than 3 times from the time of being diagnosed with SCD (AOR = 5.5, 95% CI = 1.03-8.91, p = 0.046), and eating red meat at least once per month (AOR = 3.60, 95% CI = 1.37-9.46, p = 0.010) remained the independent predictors of IDA in multivariate regression analysis. The findings of this study have shown that, support of families with children suffering from SCD in terms of financial support for improving medical services including optimal blood transfusion and affordability of diet which is rich in iron such as red meat is imperative.