ArticleBJA open2026
The prevalence of anaemia in children presenting for elective surgical and diagnostic procedures requiring sedation or general anaesthesia at two tertiary hospitals in Johannesburg.
Article in BJA open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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1 citing paper in PubMed.
- The clinical utility of routine preoperative blood testing in paediatric neurosurgery: a retrospective clinical study of preoperative practices.Child's nervous system : ChNS : official journal of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery · 2026Article
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3 authors.
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Abstract
Background: Paediatric anaemia is a major public health problem affecting millions of children globally, with a high prevalence in low- and middle-income countries. There is limited data on the prevalence of preoperative anaemia in healthy paediatric surgical patients presenting for routine surgery. The primary aim of the study was to describe the prevalence and severity of anaemia. Secondary aims were to describe the association between anaemia and demographic variables, nutritional status, and deworming status in these children. Methods: This was a prospective, cross-sectional study and included children aged 6 months to 11 years, American Society of Anaesthesiologists (ASA) physical status classification 1 and 2, presenting for elective surgical and diagnostic procedures performed under sedation or general anaesthesia at two tertiary hospitals in Johannesburg between January and May 2024. Anaemia was defined using age-specific cohorts according to the 2001 World Health Organization (WHO) definition of paediatric anaemia. Screening was done using the point-of-care haemoglobin device HemoCue®. Univariate statistical associations were performed using χ Results: A total of 290 children with a median age of 4.2 (2.2-7.1) years were included in the study. The prevalence of anaemia was 31.4% (95% confidence interval [CI] 26.1-37.1). Anaemia was classified as mild in 57.1% (95% CI 46.3-67.5), moderate in 40.7% (95% CI 30.5-51.5), and severe in 2.2% (95% CI 0.3-7.7). A significant association was found between age and the likelihood of anaemia (adjusted odds ratio 0.61, 95% CI 0.35-1.05). There were no significant associations found with sex, nutritional status, and deworming status. Conclusions: There is a notable prevalence of preoperative anaemia in paediatric patients in this South African middle income country. Children under the age of 5 years have the highest prevalence overall. The majority of patients have mild anaemia. Identifying anaemia at the surgical visit provides a valuable opportunity for health education and promotion.
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