Assessment of Urinary Ferritin as a Non-Invasive Diagnostic Test for Iron Deficiency Anemia in Pediatric Populations: A Case-Control Study

Background & Objective: Iron deficiency anemia is the most prevalent form of anemia worldwide and can cause complications in children and adolescents. This study investigates the correlation between serum and urinary ferritin and evaluates the feasibility of using urinary ferritin to diagnose iron deficiency.Methods: In this case-control study, ۴۵ patients with iron deficiency anemia were included in the case group and ۴۵ healthy children in the control group. From each participant, ۱.۵ mL of blood and ۵ mL of urine were collected, and serum and urinary ferritin levels were measured using the chemiluminescent immunoassay (CLIA) method with Mindray kits. The results were analyzed and compared using SPSS software, version ۱۶ (IBM Corp).Results: The mean age of patients was ۷.۹۵ years, and that of controls was ۷.۲۶ years. Female patients constituted ۶۲.۲% of the case group, and female controls represented ۴۶.۷% of the control group. In patients, the mean serum ferritin level was ۱۳.۳۹ ng/mL (SD = ۶.۳۷), and the mean urinary ferritin level was ۳.۵۰ ng/mL (SD = ۲.۶۵). In controls, the mean serum ferritin level was ۶۳.۷ ng/mL (SD = ۴۱.۸), and the mean urinary ferritin level was ۳.۹۸ ng/mL (SD = ۲.۸۹). Urinary ferritin demonstrated lower diagnostic accuracy for iron deficiency anemia compared with serum ferritin. The Spearman correlation coefficient between serum and urinary ferritin was ۰.۱۵۵, indicating a weak positive correlation.Conclusion: The findings of this study demonstrate an insignificant relationship between urine and serum ferritin levels. These findings indicate that urinary ferritin is not a reliable non-invasive alternative for diagnosing iron deficiency.

کلیدواژه ها:

Iron-Deficiency Anemia ، Serum ferritin ، Urine ferritin