TY - JOUR
T1 - Impression Cytology for Detection of Vitamin a Deficiency
AU - Natadisastra, Gantira
AU - Wittpenn, John R.
AU - West, Keith P.
AU - Muhilal,
AU - Sommer, Alfred
PY - 1987/9
Y1 - 1987/9
N2 - Vitamin A (retinol) deficiency causes blindness, increased morbidity, and mortality among preschool children in many developing nations. Previous studies suggest that impression cytology may represent the first simple, reliable test to detect mild xerophthalmia in young children. We used impression cytology toevaluate and follow up 75 Indonesian preschool children with mild xerophthalmia and an equal number of age-matched, clinically normal neighborhood controls. Results of impression cytology, which were closely correlated with baseline serum vitamin A levels, documented histologic improvement following treatment with vitamin A. Furthermore, results of impression cytology, where abnormal, improved to normal following vitamin A treatment in a significant percentage (23%) of otherwise clinically normal children. Impression cytology appears to detect clinical and physiologically significant preclinical vitamin A deficiency.
AB - Vitamin A (retinol) deficiency causes blindness, increased morbidity, and mortality among preschool children in many developing nations. Previous studies suggest that impression cytology may represent the first simple, reliable test to detect mild xerophthalmia in young children. We used impression cytology toevaluate and follow up 75 Indonesian preschool children with mild xerophthalmia and an equal number of age-matched, clinically normal neighborhood controls. Results of impression cytology, which were closely correlated with baseline serum vitamin A levels, documented histologic improvement following treatment with vitamin A. Furthermore, results of impression cytology, where abnormal, improved to normal following vitamin A treatment in a significant percentage (23%) of otherwise clinically normal children. Impression cytology appears to detect clinical and physiologically significant preclinical vitamin A deficiency.
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U2 - 10.1001/archopht.1987.01060090082033
DO - 10.1001/archopht.1987.01060090082033
M3 - Article
C2 - 3307720
AN - SCOPUS:0023190830
SN - 0003-9950
VL - 105
SP - 1224
EP - 1228
JO - Archives of ophthalmology
JF - Archives of ophthalmology
IS - 9
ER -