Skip Navigation

Journal of Tropical Pediatrics 1989 35(3):109-112; doi:10.1093/tropej/35.3.109
© 1989 by Oxford University Press
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow E-letters: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when E-letters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Markowitz, L. E.
Right arrow Articles by Ryder, R. W.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Markowitz, L. E.
Right arrow Articles by Ryder, R. W.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

research-article

Vitamin A Levels and Mortality Among Hospitalized Measles Patients, Kinshasa, Zaire

Lauri E. Markowitz, MD, Nzila Nzilambi, MD**, William J. Driskell, PhD, MD***, Michael G. Sension{dagger}, Elizabeth Z. Rovira, MD*, Phillip Nieburg, MD{dagger}{dagger} and Robert W. Ryder**

*Division of Immunization, Center for Prevention Services, Centers for Disease Control Atlanta, GA, USA
**Projet SIDA Kinshasa, Zaire
***Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control Atlanta, GA, USA
{dagger}The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Baltimore, MD, USA
{dagger}{dagger} Division of Nutrition, Center for Health Promotion and Education, Centers for Disease Control Atlanta, GA, USA

Correspondence: Technical Information Services, Center for Prevention Services, Freeway Park, Centers For Disease Control, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.

Treatment with high dose vitamin A has recently been recommended for children with measles in communities where vitamin A deficiency is a recognized problem. However, the relationship between vitamin A and measles mortality has not been clearly established. We studied serum vitamin A levels in 283 children ≤ 5 years of age admitted to Mama Yemo and Kalembe Lembe Hospitals in Kinshasa, Zaire, between January and March, 1987. Vitamin A levels were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Vitamin A levels ranged from <5 to 63µg/dl (median, 8). The overall case-fatality rate was 26 per cent. On univariate analysis, age <24 months, pneumonia on admission, lymphopenia (<2000/mm3), and lower vitamin A levels were associated with death during hospitalization. In a multivariate logistic regression model, a vitamin A level <5 µg/dl was associated with fatal outcome for children younger than 24 months old (relative risk = 2.9, 95 per cent CI 1.3, 6.8), but not for older children. Further studies are needed to determine whether low vitamin A levels predispose children to severe measles and the role of vitamin A supplements in the prevention of measles mortality.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Am J Trop Med HygHome page
L. E. CAULFIELD, S. A. RICHARD, and R. E. BLACK
UNDERNUTRITION AS AN UNDERLYING CAUSE OF MALARIA MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY IN CHILDREN LESS THAN FIVE YEARS OLD
Am J Trop Med Hyg, August 1, 2004; 71(2_suppl): 55 - 63.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Nutr.Home page
F. J. Rosales
Vitamin A Supplementation of Vitamin A Deficient Measles Patients Lowers the Risk of Measles-Related Pneumonia in Zambian Children
J. Nutr., December 1, 2002; 132(12): 3700 - 3703.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 CVIHome page
J. Jason, L. K. Archibald, O. C. Nwanyanwu, A. L. Sowell, I. Buchanan, J. Larned, M. Bell, P. N. Kazembe, H. Dobbie, and W. R. Jarvis
Vitamin A Levels and Immunity in Humans
Clin. Vaccine Immunol., May 1, 2002; 9(3): 616 - 621.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Nutr.Home page
F. J. Rosales and A. C. Ross
Acute Inflammation Induces Hyporetinemia and Modifies the Plasma and Tissue Response to Vitamin A Supplementation in Marginally Vitamin A-Deficient Rats
J. Nutr., June 1, 1998; 128(6): 960 - 966.
[Abstract] [Full Text]


Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.