Anemia among children treated in primary healthcare centers in a district of North of Lima: Anemia en niños atendidos en establecimientos del primer nivel de un distrito de Lima Norte

• Autores: Fajardo-Pantoja, Silvia Elena, Ramírez-Linares, Darwin Heli, Berrocal-Anco, Licely Ruby, Serrano-Merma, Rocio, Barreto-Salas, Diego Stefano, Lara-Medina, Belissa Yuliana
• Formato: artículo
• Fecha de Publicación: 2019
• Institución: Universidad de Ciencias y Humanidades
• Repositorio: Health care & global health
• Lenguaje: español
• OAI Identifier: oai:ojs.openhgh.org:article/51
• Enlace del recurso: http://revista.uch.edu.pe/index.php/hgh/article/view/51
• Nivel de acceso: acceso abierto
• Materia: Anemia; Niños; Visita domiciliaria; Perú

Objectives: Describe the characteristics of anemia among children treated in primary healthcare centers. Materials and methods: Descriptive study based on a secondary source. The study population consisted of children under five years of age attended in six primary healthcare centers located in the district of San Martin de Porres, in North of Lima. Results: The analysis was performed with 1684 screened children under five years old. Of the sample, 72.8% (n = 1226) of the children resulted in anemia, 52.2% (n = 879) were male, 51.8% (n = 873) were from the age group belonging between 12 to 36 months, 48.9% (n = 824) had moderate anemia and 23.9% (n = 402) mild anemia. Males had a higher frequency of moderate anemia (p = 0.003), the highest proportion of anemia occurred between ages 12 to 36 months (p = 0.182). In children with moderate anemia, a higher proportion (91.4%) received three or more doses of ferrous sulfate, compared to 87.3% in the mild anemia group (p = 0.025). The highest frequency of visits was performed at children with moderate anemia than those in the group with mild anemia (p <0.001). Conclusion: The frequency of anemia in children treated in primary healthcare centers is high. The majority is classified as moderate anemia and affects children between 6 and 36 months of age. It is recommended to continue with home visits to ensure continuity of treatment and avoid abandonment. Keywords: Anemia; Child; House Calls; Peru (Source: MeSH, NLM).