Latent iron deficiency in non-anemic children under five years of age

Background: The most common nutritional deficiency in world is iron deficiency. the cause of anemia due to and seen commonly children under five years age. Objective: To determine frequency non-anemic Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted pediatrics department –removed for blind review---from August 2020 February 2021. total 145 children, ages 2-59 months were enrolled through non-probability consecutive sampling this study. complete blood count C-reactive protein sent laboratory tests rule out infection/inflammation. In with normal hematocrit (30-40%) CRP (≤ 6), serum ferritin levels sent. Those whom ≤12ng/ml regarded as cases latent SPSS version 23 used data entry analysis. Age gender effect modifiers controlled by stratification. chi square test post value p ≤ 0.05 considered significant. Results: mean age patients 3.20±5.41 years. Among all 69 (47.6%) boys remaining 76 (52.4%) girls. Out 62 (42.8%) deficient whereas 83 (57.2%) non-iron deficient. male female ratio 1:1.3. prevalence among infants 46%, followed toddlers 42% preschoolers 41%. level 22.96±2.21 ng/ml. 33.84±2.68. statistical analysis showed that there an insignificant association between groups (p ≥ 0.5). Conclusion: study concluded very common, especially infants. Screening seems be a important task better child care. Key words: Anemia, Iron-Deficiency; Child, Preschool; Malnutrition.