Article Text
Reminder of important clinical lesson
Severe diet-related iron deficiency anaemia in a 17-month-old child
Summary
A 17-month-old girl presented with an upper respiratory tract infections, and was found to have a haemoglobin of 3.3 g/dl. Although noticeably pale, she was largely asymptomatic. Her iron deficiency anaemia was found to be the result of poor diet. With oral iron supplements and improved diet, her haemoglobin increased rapidly, and she is now doing very well.