The prevalence of anemia and iron depletion in the population aged 10 years or older

Soon Ki Kim; Hee Sook Kang; Chul Soo Kim; Young Taek Kim

doi:10.5045/kjh.2011.46.3.196

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Original Article

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Korean J Hematol 2011; 46(3):

Published online September 30, 2011

https://doi.org/10.5045/kjh.2011.46.3.196

The prevalence of anemia and iron depletion in the population aged 10 years or older

Soon Ki Kim^1*, Hee Sook Kang¹, Chul Soo Kim², and Young Taek Kim³

Author Info. +

¹Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Inha University Hospital, Incheon, Korea.

²Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Inha University Hospital, Incheon, Korea.

³Korea Center for Disease Control & Prevention, Seoul, Korea.

Correspondence to : Correspondence to Soon Ki Kim, M.D. Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Inha University Hospital, 7-206, 3-ga Shinheung-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon 400-103, Korea. Tel: +82-32-890-2843, Fax: +82-32-890-2844, pedkim@inha.ac.kr

Received: April 18, 2011; Revised: June 8, 2011; Accepted: August 25, 2011

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

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Abstract

Background

Anemia and iron depletion continue to be common disorders in the world. This study was aimed at assessing the prevalence of anemia and iron depletion in apparently healthy Koreans aged 10 years or more.

Methods

We used the data of the 4^th Korean National Health & Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), which assessed 7,607 individuals (3,337 males and 4,270 females). Iron depletion was defined as serum ferritin less than 15 ng/mL.

Results

In males, mean hemoglobin (Hb) concentration decreased after the age of 50. The prevalence of anemia was 7.1% in 60 to 69 year olds and 12.3% in men aged 70 or older. As for females, the prevalence of anemia was 8.8% in 15 to 17 year olds, 16.7% in 18 to 49 year olds, 10.9% in 60 to 69 year olds, and 18.2% women aged 70 or older. In males, the prevalence of iron depletion was 8.6% at ages 10 to 14 years, 3.9% at 15 to 17, and 2.6% at 70 years or older. In females, the prevalence of iron depletion was 17.2% at ages 10 to 14 years, 24.1% at 15 to 17, 33.0% at 18 to 49, and 5.7% at 70 years or older. Although normocytic anemia was most common in both males and females, the proportion of microcytosis and macrocytosis increased at age 70 or older.

Conclusion

The prevalence of anemia and iron depletion was high in women of reproductive age and in the elderly. Considering the rapid increase in the older population, an intervention to prevent anemia and iron depletion is imperative.

Keywords Anemia, Hemoglobin, Iron depletion, Prevalence

Article

Original Article

Korean J Hematol 2011; 46(3): 196-199

Published online September 30, 2011 https://doi.org/10.5045/kjh.2011.46.3.196

The prevalence of anemia and iron depletion in the population aged 10 years or older

Soon Ki Kim^1*, Hee Sook Kang¹, Chul Soo Kim², and Young Taek Kim³

¹Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Inha University Hospital, Incheon, Korea.

²Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Inha University Hospital, Incheon, Korea.

³Korea Center for Disease Control & Prevention, Seoul, Korea.

Correspondence to: Correspondence to Soon Ki Kim, M.D. Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Inha University Hospital, 7-206, 3-ga Shinheung-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon 400-103, Korea. Tel: +82-32-890-2843, Fax: +82-32-890-2844, pedkim@inha.ac.kr

Received: April 18, 2011; Revised: June 8, 2011; Accepted: August 25, 2011

Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Keywords: Anemia, Hemoglobin, Iron depletion, Prevalence

Abstract

Fig 1.

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Figure 1.

Mean and standard deviation of hemoglobin according to the age and sex.

Blood Research 2011; 46: 196-199https://doi.org/10.5045/kjh.2011.46.3.196

Fig 2.

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Figure 2.

Mean and standard deviation of ferritin according to the age and sex.

Blood Research 2011; 46: 196-199https://doi.org/10.5045/kjh.2011.46.3.196

Table 1 . The prevalence of anemia^a), microcytosis and iron depletion^b) in males..

^a)Anemia was defined in accordance with WHO Hb thresholds: less than 12 g/dL in adolescents aged 10 to 14 yr, and less than 13 g/dL in adult males. ^b)Iron depletion was defined as ferritin less than 15 ng/mL..

Abbreviation: MCV, mean corpuscular volume..

Table 2 . The prevalence of anemia^a), microcytosis and iron depletion^b) in females..

^a)Anemia was defined as hemoglobin less than 12 g/dL in all females. ^b)Iron depletion was defined as ferritin less than 15 ng/mL..