Prevalence and Determinants of Iron Deficiency Anemia Among Children Under Five Years at Luwero General Hospital, Uganda.

Background: Iron deficiency anemia is a public health concern among children under five years old. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and determinants of iron deficiency anemia among children under five years attending Luwero General Hospital, Luwero District. Patients and Methods: This cross-sectional study included 380 children under five years old who attended Luweero Hospital. Participants were selected using a simple random sampling technique, and caregivers were interviewed using a structured questionnaire to collect demographic information. Laboratory tests performed were; hemoglobin and ferritin level, to evaluate anemia severity. Iron deficiency anemia was defined as serum ferritin levels below 12 μg/L. Association between determinants and iron deficiency was attained by developing bivariate and multivariate logistic regression models using STATA software version 14, and a p value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results: This study found that anemia was prevalent amongst children under five years, affecting 38.4% (n = 146) of the sample, with iron deficiency anemia (IDA) identified in 16.6% (n = 63). Majority of the children with iron deficiency anemia had moderate anemia 32 (50.8%). At multivariate analysis, several factors were independently associated with iron deficiency anemia (IDA); male gender (aOR: 2.29, 95% CI: 1.20-4.35, p = 0.012), and children that had infection in the past 3 months (aOR: 5.62, 95% CI: 2.94-10.74, p < 0.000). However, parental age of 20-29 years (aOR: 0.21, 95% CI: 0.06-0.73, p = 0.014) and 30-39 years (aOR: 0.17; 95% CI: 0.05-0.59; p = 0.005) were independently associated with a significantly reduced odds of iron deficiency anemia (IDA). Conclusion: The study highlights that iron deficiency anaemia is a significant health concern affecting 16.6% of the children studied. Male sex and a recent history of infection were found to be significant independent risk factors for IDA. Conversely, parental age between 20 and 39 years was identified as a strong independent protective factor, with the most pronounced reduction in IDA odds observed among children of parents aged 30-39. Anemia screening and intervention programs should be proactively targeted towards male children, especially those with a recent history of infection.