Neonatal Vitamin A Deficiency and Its Impact on Acute Respiratory Infections among Preschool Inuit Children
OBJECTIVE: To assess if vitamin A concentration in umbilical cord blood is associated with incidence and severity of respiratory infections in preschool Inuit children from Nunavik (Québec, Canada). METHOD: The medical charts of 305 children were reviewed from 0 to 5 years of age. The association be...
Published in: | Canadian Journal of Public Health |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
Format: | Text |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Springer International Publishing
2008
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6975672/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18457282 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03405454 |
Summary: | OBJECTIVE: To assess if vitamin A concentration in umbilical cord blood is associated with incidence and severity of respiratory infections in preschool Inuit children from Nunavik (Québec, Canada). METHOD: The medical charts of 305 children were reviewed from 0 to 5 years of age. The association between vitamin A concentration in umbilical cord plasma and the incidence rates of acute otitis media (AOM), lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) and hospitalization rates for LRTIs was evaluated using Poisson regression. RESULTS: Compared to children with vitamin A concentration >-20 μg/dl, adjusted rate ratios (RR) for children below 20 μg/dl ranged between 1.06–1.62 for AOM, 1.12–1.34 for LRTIs, and 1.09–1.43 for hospitalization for LRTIs. Most RRs were statistically significant for AOM and LRTIs, but not for hospitalization for LRTIs. CONCLUSION: Neonatal vitamin A deficiency appears to be a significant risk factor for AOM and LRTIs in this population. |
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