Child anemia in Cambodia: A descriptive analysis of temporal and geospatial trends and logistic regression-based examination of factors associated with anemia in children

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Samnang Um, The National Institute of Public Health, Cambodia; Michael R. Cope, Brigham Young University, Provo; Jonathan A. Muir, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2023-09-15
• Publisher: PLOS
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2023 Um et al
• License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): https://doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pgph.0002082
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: PLOS Global Public Health
• Volume: 3
• Issue: 9
• Start Page: e0002082
• Grant/Funding Information: The authors received no specific funding for this work.
• Keywords: childhood anemia; Anemia; income disparities; Cambodia
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Public Health

Abstract

Anemia in children remains a public health concern in many resource-limited countries. To better understand child anemia in Cambodia, we examined temporal and geospatial trends of childhood anemia and used logistic regression to analyze its association with individual and household characteristics using data from the Cambodia Demographic and Health Surveys for 2005, 2010, and 2014. The prevalence of childhood anemia decreased from 62.2% in 2005 to 56.6% in 2014. The prevalence of childhood anemia was highest in Pursat (84.3%) for 2005, Kampong Thom (67%) for 2010, and Preah Vihear and Steung Treng (68.6%) for 2014. After adjusting for other variables, factors positively associated with childhood anemia included having a mother who was anemic (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.77, 95% CI: 1.58–1.97); being male vs. female (AOR = 1.20, 95% CI: 1.07–1.33), underweight (AOR = 1.24, 95% CI: 1.14–1.57), or stunted (AOR = 1.24, 95% CI: 1.09–1.41); or having had a recent episode of fever (AOR = 1.16, 95% CI: 1.03–1.31). Children were less likely to have anemia if they were older than 12 months. They were also less likely to have anemia if they were from a wealthier household (AOR = 0.64; 95% CI: 0.50–0.84) or had taken medications for intestinal parasites (AOR = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.89–0.93). These associations were generally consistent across time and space. Public health interventions and policies to alleviate anemia should be prioritized to address these factors across geospatial divides. Anemia remains highly prevalent among children aged 6–59 months in Cambodia.