Introduction
Blood is a major organ in the body that helps in nourishing all the organs of the body, providing them with oxygen and nutrients. But when there is a decrease in the level of blood, there is an overall decrease in cells that act as the body’s defense mechanism. The presence of anemia is seen as a worldwide issue that affects almost half of the children's population. Anemia during this age group is crucial and should be monitored carefully, as it should not affect the child’s growth and development. Infections associated with children are a very common clinical symptom, and care should be taken in limiting the levels of infection as their immunity levels are still not completely developed and can lead to fatality.
What Is Anemia?
Anemia is a clinical condition characterized by a decrease in red blood cell count lower than normal also known as the decrease in the hemoglobin levels. There are different types of anemia seen, and they are
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Iron deficiency anemia (a condition of blood seen due to a decrease in iron levels).
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Aplastic anemia (a rare type of anemia that occurs due to lack of production of blood cells from the bone marrow).
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Hemolytic anemia (a type of anemia that is seen by the breakdown of blood cells).
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Pernicious anemia (this type of anemia occurs due to lack of vitamin B12 deficiency) etc. Globally, the rate of incidence of anemia is around 39.8 percent to 43.8 percent, involving around 269 million children globally, especially ranging from six to 59 months of age. Geographically, the incidence of anemia is seen mostly in the areas of poor income, mostly in the African region.
How Is Anemia Seen in Children?
The common symptoms of children with anemia are:
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Tiredness.
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Lack of energy.
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Being irritable.
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Skin appears paler than usual.
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Difficulty eating.
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Shortness of breath.
What Is the Clinical Correlation Between Infection and Anemia in Children?
One of the important issues when it comes to children with anemia is the incidence of child mortality, and because of this reason, everyone needs to have knowledge of infections associated with anemia in children and ways to prevent or manage it. The reasons for such severe anemia can be several reasons and they include conditions that affect the health of hemoglobin, nutritional deficiencies, and infections. Here the infections that cause fever with hospitality can be around six to 15 percent, and the death rates include around five to 28 percent.
The bacteria that cause infection in anemia in children are staphylococcus aureus, streptococcus pneumonia, Haemophilus influenzae, Escherichia coli, and nontyphoidal salmonellae infection. These causes of severe anemia can be classified into two types, namely hypo regenerative (anemia characterized by a decrease in hemoglobin and red cell count), including anemias like aplastic anemia, iron deficiency anemia, etc., or regenerative anemia (here anemia occurs due to lack of production of blood cells by the bone marrow) and these include anemia caused by any drug or increase in the size of the spleen.
What Is the Pathology of Anemia and Infection?
Several epidemiological studies have shown that there is a very strong association between bacterial infections and severe anemia, where the common causes include malaria (it is a parasitic infection caused by parasite plasmodium through mosquito bite), HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), nutritional deficiency, and malnutrition. Clinically, when there is severe anemia, there is an increased need for cell production in the body, and because of this reason, many immature cells are also released into the system. This leads to hemolysis, also known as the breakdown of the blood cells, eventually causing compromised immunity and a leaky gut. The result of these pathological changes happening inside the body leads to compromised immunity, leading to bacteremia. Bacteremia is known as a clinical condition characterized by bacterial colonization in blood. The leakage of the gut extended to constant inflammation of the intestine, causing dysfunction of the immune system and gut dysbiosis (alteration in the microbiology of the gut). This dysbiosis of the gut can be seen clinically in three types
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By the loss of essential bacteria.
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There is an evident loss of bacterial diversity in the entire system.
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Increased colonization of bad bacteria.
In Iron Deficiency Anemia:
Iron deficiency anemia is one of the most frequent types of anemia around the world, and here's how it relates to infection. In iron deficiency anemia there is a decrease in the levels of iron, where iron is an essential nutrient in the body. The compromised levels of iron lead to alteration in immunity by altering the synthesis of nucleic acid, the flow of oxygen to the mitochondria (the powerhouse of the cell), compromised iron levels, etc. Here, when the body gets infected by the associated infections, they promote sequestration of iron (it is an inbuilt mechanism of the body’s immunity to invading the bacteria bound to the iron-binding proteins) as the first line of function and is also seen as the predisposing factor for any bacterial infection.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is seen that both anemia and infection are interlinked to each other and that one leads to the progression of the other, leading to negative health effects in children. Although the reason for both anemia and infection can be a common entity, the amount of effect both these conditions have on the body is very severe. Infection is the increase in bacterial levels in the blood, here, these bacterias lead to damage of the gut and the intestines altering its ability to absorb the nutrition in the food to the body, thus leading to anemia. In the case of anemia, a low level of blood cells makes the body nutritionally compromised and prone to bacterial infections. Hence, serious care should be taken in handling children by restoring their blood levels by providing proper nutrition and giving proper medical management like vaccinations and periodic checkups to prevent them from the progression of any new infection; care should be given from the very early stage by observing any early signs of anemia like fatigue or dizziness or signs of infection like fever, cold, etc to prevent fatality and to offer a healthy living for the child.
