Anemia, Iron Deficiency Anemia and Lead Poisoning in Children with Opioid Toxicity: A Study in North East of Iran

Background: Opium is a new source of lead and considered as a cause of lead poisoning. As anemia and lead poisoning affect growth and behavior negatively, their timely prevention, diagnosis, and treatment are essential. The aim of thi study is evaluation of the prevalence of anemia, iron deficiency anemia, and lead poisoning in children with opioid toxicity. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 150 children admitted to the pediatric poisoning unit of Imam Reza hospital, Mashhad, Iran from May 2015-2016 were divided into two groups of methadone/tramadol and raw opium toxicity. For each child hematocrit, hemoglobin, RDW (red blood cell distribution width ), MCV (mean corpuscular volume), CRP(C-reactive protein), and blood lead level (BLL) were tested. One hundred children without opioid toxicity from a simultaneous study were considered as control group and compared with our patients regarding BLL. Results: The patients’ mean age was 33.08±33.35 months. The prevalence of anemia and lead poisoning was 40% and 83.3%, respectively; neither indicating a significant difference between the M/T and opium groups (p=0.241, 0.227). On the other hand, 125(83.3%) and 63(63%) cases and controls had lead poisoning (BLL>5μg/dl), respectively, showing a significant difference (p<0.001). Lead poisoning was not significantly different between the controls and the cases under 2 years of age (p=0.085). Conclusion: A single episode of opioid toxicity does not result in anemia. However, a significant difference was observed between the cases and controls regarding lead poisoning. Although the BLL in the cases under two years of age was higher than the controls, the difference was not significant.