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American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 57, 904-907, Copyright © 1993 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc

ORIGINAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

Vitamin A deficiency among children in a periurban South African settlement

A Coutsoudis, D Mametja, CC Jinabhai and HM Coovadia
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Natal, Congella, South Africa.

Preschool children (aged 3-6 y) who were living in an informal settlement within metropolitan Durban, South Africa, were assessed for vitamin A status. The serum retinol concentration of 169 children tested was 0.73 +/- 0.26 mumol/L (mean +/- SD). Nine children (5%) had vitamin A deficiency (< 0.35 mumol/L) and 75 children (44%) had low vitamin A concentrations (< 0.70 mumol/L). Conjunctival impression cytology (CIC) in 185 children revealed that 18% had poor vitamin A status as defined by two abnormal conjunctival specimens. The CIC test was a feasible and reproducible method; however, it correlated poorly with the traditionally accepted serum retinol threshold of deficiency in this population where overt vitamin A deficiency is not prevalent. This survey demonstrated that regardless of the measurement tool, there is a prevalence of subclinical vitamin A deficiency in this typical periurban informal settlement and accordingly we suggest that these children should be targeted for vitamin A-intervention strategies.


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N. G. Congdon and K. P. West Jr.
Physiologic Indicators of Vitamin A Status
J. Nutr., September 1, 2002; 132(9): 2889S - 2894.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


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