From the Department of Pediatrics, Ankara Bilkent City Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
Saudi Med J. 2024 Aug;45(8):821-825. doi: 10.15537/smj.2024.45.8.20240248.
To retrospectively assess the serum levels of zinc, folate, and vitamin B12 in healthy children aged between 3-12 months.
This study includes healthy children aged between 3-12 months who presented to the pediatric outpatient clinics of Ankara Bilkent City Hospital, Ankara, Turkey, between January 2020 and July 2022. The levels of serum zinc, folate, and vitamin B12 were evaluated retrospectively.
Of the 495 patients enrolled in our study, 248 (50.1%) were female. The median age of the patients was 10 (range: 7-12) months. Zinc deficiency was detected in 24 (4.8%) patients, and vitamin B12 deficiency was found in 49 (9.8%) patients. No folate deficiency was observed in any patient. There was no significant correlation between the patients' height and weight percentiles and their serum levels of zinc, folate, and vitamin B12 (>0.05 for each).
In conclusion, we do not recommend routine screening for zinc, folate, and vitamin B12 levels in children under 12 months of age without active issues or chronic diseases due to the associated costs. We propose that evaluating serum levels of zinc, folate, and vitamin B12 is a more appropriate clinical approach in children at risk for micronutrient deficiencies and in selected patient groups.
回顾性评估 3-12 个月龄健康儿童的血清锌、叶酸和维生素 B12 水平。
本研究纳入了 2020 年 1 月至 2022 年 7 月期间在土耳其安卡拉比尔肯特城市医院儿科门诊就诊的 3-12 个月龄健康儿童。回顾性评估血清锌、叶酸和维生素 B12 水平。
在纳入本研究的 495 例患儿中，248 例（50.1%）为女性。患儿的中位年龄为 10 月龄（范围：7-12 月龄）。24 例（4.8%）患儿存在锌缺乏，49 例（9.8%）患儿存在维生素 B12 缺乏。所有患儿均无叶酸缺乏。患儿的身高和体重百分位数与血清锌、叶酸和维生素 B12 水平之间无显著相关性（p 值均＞0.05）。
综上，我们不建议在无明显疾病或慢性疾病的 12 月龄以下儿童中常规筛查锌、叶酸和维生素 B12 水平，因为这会带来相关费用。我们建议，对于有微量营养素缺乏风险的儿童和特定患者群体，评估血清锌、叶酸和维生素 B12 水平是一种更合适的临床方法。
