Rickets in Pediatric Age Less Than 5 Years in Children Welfare Teaching Hospital
Keywords:
Rickets, Vitamin D, Delayed dentition and walking.Abstract
Background: Rickets is one of major prevalent five diseases affecting children in developing countries. In Iraq, nutritional rickets is still representing public health problem.
Aim of study: To study the epidemiology, clinical presentation and diagnostic criteria of under 5 years children with rickets presenting to consultant clinic of Children Welfare Teaching hospital.
Patients and methods: A cross sectional study conducted in Consultant Clinic and Wards of Children Welfare Teaching Hospital during the period from 1st of December, 2017 to 30th of September, 2018 on all children with rickets presented and admitted to hospital. The diagnosis of rickets was established through clinical presentation, x-ray and laboratory findings.
Results: Mean age of children with rickets was (1.8) years with predominance of female gender. The common clinical presentations and signs of rickets in children below the age of 5 years age are frontal bossing, delayed dentition, delayed fontanel closure, failure to thrive, waddling gait and delayed walking. A highly significant association was observed between children with rickets and each of vitamin D intake, delayed dentition and delayed walking (p<0.001). An important relationship was detected between each of short stature, underweight, microcephaly and children with rickets (p<0.001).
Conclusions: Rickets is prevalent among children under 5 years of age presented to consultant clinic in Iraq.
