The Effect of Iron Deficiency Anemia and Serum Ferritin Deficiency on Cognitive Functions in Children 1 to 5 Years Old.

Abstract

Objective: We aimed to investigate the effects of iron deficiency anemia and serum ferritin deficiency on mental and motor functions in children 1 to 5 years of age and whether these effects could be improved by treatment.

Materials and methods: The study was conducted between February 2021 and July 2021 and included a total of 79 children between 1 and 5 years old. Participants were divided into 3 groups according to their blood results: iron deficiency anemia (n = 19), nonanemic iron deficiency (n = 21), and control group (n = 39). Ankara Developmental Screening Inventory (ADSI) was administered to all participants before treatment. The case groups were subjected to 3-month iron treatment, and participants were reevaluated with ADSI.

Results: The ADSI T-scores of the case groups were significantly lower than the control group. A significant increase in T-scores was observed in both case groups after treatment. In addition, positive and moderate correlation was observed between serum ferritin level and language-cognitive activity, fine-motor development, gross-motor development, and social skills-self-care, and, positive and strong correlation was observed between serum ferritin level and general development and T-scores.

Conclusion: We observed that the decrease in serum ferritin levels, an early indicator of iron deficiency, negatively affected cognitive functions and that this effect could be partially corrected by treatment.