Prevalence of anemia in children aged 6-24 months

Objetive: To determine the prevalence of anemia in children from three health centers of La Paz city. Design: Descriptive study. Methods: 114 children with ages between 6 to 24 months were enrolled. Capillary blood samples were obtained from a finger Prick with de use of aseptic standardized techniques; hemoglobin concentrations were measures immediately with a portable HemoCue. A cut off point adjusted for altitude was determinate for diagnosis (13.6 g/dl). Results: The prevalence of anemia in all of the health centres was 86.6%. In Bella Vista there was an 8% severe anemia, 10% Moderate anemia and 19% of mild anemia. In Chasquipampa 6% severe anemia, 11% and 12% moderate anemia and mild anemia respectively. In Villa Nuevo Potosí, 4% severe anemia, 9% moderate and 20% mild anemia. The index of correlation of Spearman between the indicator tall for age and levels of hemoglobin was 0.2 (p=0.048). Conclusions: The high prevalence of anemia in children smaller than 2 years old, independently of gender, nutritional status and health center which they attend. Although the anemia has many causes, this high prevalence is suggestive that the diverse programs implemented for its control have not been effective.