Parenteral versus Oral Iron Therapy in Children with Iron Deficiency Anemia and the Safety Profile of Parenteral Iron Therapy
Keywords:
Iron deficiency anemia, Iron therapy, Parenteral, pediatricAbstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess the differences between parenteral and oral iron supplementation therapy for children with iron-deficient anemia.
METHODOLOGY: This prospective, randomized study was conducted at the Pediatric Healthcare Centre, Karachi, from January to December 2024. Pediatric patients aged 1-15 years diagnosed with anemia were randomly assigned to two groups: group A received oral iron therapy, and group B received parenteral iron therapy during the study period. We used SPSS 23 to analyze the data. Continuous variables were assessed as means and standard deviations, while categorical variables were analyzed as frequencies and percentages.
RESULTS: Total 82 patients were included in the study, mean age was reported as 4.2±1.6 years, the gender distribution was reported as 51(62.1%) male and 31(37.8%) females, Post treatment laboratory investigations indicated retics% of 3.63±1.22, hemoglobin as 7.48±0.89, MCV as 68.9±4.8 and serum iron level as 181.5±41.6 in group A oral therapy patients, while retics % of 9.17±2.33, Hemoglobin as 9.2±1.87, MCV as 70.2±5.61 and serum iron level as 214.2±70.9 in group B Parenteral therapy group respectively.
CONCLUSION: Parenteral therapy improves iron values more quickly and significantly.
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