Assessment of vitamin A status of preschool children in Indonesia using plasma retinol-binding protein.

Although plasma retinol-binding protein (RBP) has been proposed as an indicator of vitamin A status of populations in less technologically developed settings, potential factors which could influence this indicator include inflammation and protein energy status. Plasma RBP, retinol, alpha1-acid glycoprotein (AGP), C-reactive protein (CRP), and albumin were measured in a study of 236 preschool children in Bandung, Indonesia. Spearman correlation coefficient between plasma RBP and retinol concentrations was 0.

24-hour history is more closely associated with vitamin A status and provides a better estimate of dietary vitamin A intake of deficient Indonesian preschool children than a food frequency method.

Objectives: To determine if the Simplified Dietary Assessment to Identify Groups at Risk of Inadequate Intake of Vitamin A developed by the International Vitamin A Consultative Group (IVACG) correctly classified a group of vitamin A-deficient children as being at risk, and to see if a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) or 24-hour history (24HH) yielded estimated dietary vitamin A intakes most closely associated with vitamin A status.

Design: Forty-seven foods were identified as contributing most of the vitamin A to the diet of the study population. For each food, usual portion sizes were determined during a pilot study.

Hyporetinolemia and acute phase proteins in children with and without xerophthalmia.

Background: The relations among hyporetinolemia, acute phase proteins, and vitamin A status in children are unclear.

Objective: The objective was to examine the relations between acute phase proteins and plasma retinol concentrations in children with and without clinical vitamin A deficiency (Bitot spots and night blindness).

Design: The study was a nonconcurrent analysis of acute phase protein concentrations and other data from a previous clinical trial.

Pupillary and visual thresholds in young children as an index of population vitamin A status.

A prototype scotopic sensitivity machine was used to evaluate pupillary and visual thresholds for 295 Indonesian children aged 1-5 y, most of whom were initially vitamin A-deficient. Subjects were tested 6 and 9 mo after receiving a high dose of vitamin A. A group of 136 older children was tested at 6 mo after dosing; all subjects underwent testing at 9 mo.

The decline of admissions for xerophthalmia at Cicendo Eye Hospital, Indonesia, 1981-1992.

Xerophthalmia due to vitamin A deficiency is a leading cause of blindness in children and has been a serious problem in Indonesia. To determine whether progress has been made in the eradication of xerophthalmia, we assessed hospital admissions for xerophthalmia at Cicendo Eye Hospital, Bandung, Indonesia. The hospital admission registry from 1981 to 1992 was reviewed.