Description

Category: Vitamin A Drops

• Description of product: Vitamin A plays an essential role in vision, normal differentiation and maintenance of epithelial cells, adequate immune function (T-cell function), reproduction, growth and development. Normal fetal development of the eye requires adequate vitamin A intake and stores [1]. Symptoms of vitamin A deficiency include night-blindness, exophthalmia progressing to corneal ulceration, and hyperkeratosis skin lesions and an increased susceptibility to infections. Vitamin A deficiency is also associated with poor bone growth, nonspecific dermatologic problems (eg, hyperkeratosis), and impaired immune function. Preterm infants are at increased risk of micronutrient deficiencies as a result of low body stores, maternal deficiencies, and inadequate supplementation and are usually given vitamin A supplements once enteral feeding has been established.

  Vitamin A supplementation may be required in infants and children with liver disease, particularly cholestatic liver disease, or short Bowel syndrome due to the malabsorption of fat soluble vitamins. Treatment is sometimes initiated with very high doses of vitamin A and the child should be monitored closely; very high doses are associated with acute toxicity.

  Vitamin A may have benefits for preterm infants in the prevention of chronic lung disease, retinopathy of prematurity, and necrotizing enterocolitis [2-4]. A meta-analysis of relatively high-dose vitamin A supplementations in infants <1500 g concluded that the incidence of oxygen requirement by 36 weeks corrected age was reduced, and there was a trend towards reductions of retinopathy and sepsis [2].

• This guideline replaces previous recommendations on vitamin A supplementation for the prevention of vitamin A deficiency, exophthalmia and nutritional blindness in infants and children 6–59 months of age (3). Vitamin A supplements should be delivered to children 6–59 months of age twice yearly, during health system contacts. This should be marked on the child health card, or integrated into other public health programmers aimed at improving child survival, such as polio or measles national immunization days, or biannual child health days delivering a package of interventions such as deforming, distribution of insecticide-treated mosquito nets and immunizations. The magnitude of the effect may differ across settings and populations, possibly due to the extent of vitamin A deficiency or the availability of other nutrients (e.g. dietary intake of vitamin A will differ across locations and the effects of supplementation may be smaller in places with greater access to vitamin A-rich foods or with regular consumption of vitamin A-fortified foods).

Manufacturer/Marketer Address
Samridhi Pharmacare Private Limited

USHAS, Near Ganpati Kavu, West Hill, kozhikode-673005, Kerala

Email: [email protected] Toll-Free: 1800-890-1671

Country of Origin: India