IRON-DEFICIENCY - A CAUSE OF STROKE IN INFANTS AND CHILDREN

Iron deficiency is a common pediatric problem affecting 20%-25% of the world's infants, Most commonly causing anemia, iron deficiency is als o implicated in such neurologic sequelae as irritability, lethargy, he adaches, developmental delay, and infrequently papilledema, pseudotumo r cerebri, and cranial nerve abnormalities. Rarely has iron deficiency been recognized as a significant cause of stroke in the adult or pedi atric populations, We report a series of 6 children, 6 to 18 months of age, who presented with an ischemic stroke or venous thrombosis after a viral prodrome. All patients had iron deficiency as a consistent fi nding among the group, and other known etiologies of childhood stroke were excluded, These patients provide evidence of a strong association between iron deficiency and ischemic events in children between 6 and 18 months of age. (C) 1997 by Elsevier Science Inc.