Study of the absorption of vitamin A oily preparation among school pupils from the rural.

Fasting and postabsorptive vitamin A level was studied in 55 school pupils aged 6-13 years, with giardiasis, ascaridiasis, or other parasites, both before and after their eradication with appropriate therapy; and in 6 pupils without parasites. Acceptable plasma vitamin A levels were detected in 20.7% of the cases. Mean fasting plasma vitamin A level among controls (Parasite-free) was 20.2 micrograms/dl. None of the parasitized pupils had acceptable mean plasma vitamin A concentrations. Prompt eradication of the giardia lead to significant improvement in the fasting plasma vitamin A concentration. Post absorptive vitamin A level above 100 micrograms/dl was detected in just one case. Post absorptive vitamin A level ranged between 31.5 and 67.7 in the rest, regardless of the type of parasite or treatment.