Research progress on the correlation between hepcidin and vitamin D levels in children with iron deficiency anemia

Iron deficiency anemia （IDA） is a common type of anemia in childhood caused by iron deficiency due to varying causes, which can result in a decline in the synthesis of hemoglobin. IDA will adversely affect the growth and development of children. Hepcidin exerts a negative regulatory effect on iron metabolism. Recent studies have shown that hepcidin can be used as one of the biomarkers for early diagnosis of IDA and the response evaluation. Vitamin D exerts a direct or indirect inhibitory effect upon hepcidin. Lack of vitamin D is one of the common triggers for anemia in children, and the degree of vitamin D deficiency is positively correlated with the degree of anemia. Combined therapy of vitamin D and iron exerts preventive and therapeutic effect on IDA. In this article, the correlation between the hepcidin and vitamin D levels in IDA children and their significance in the diagnosis and treatment of IDA were reviewed, aiming to provide novel diagnostic and therapeutic ideas for the clinical management of pediatric IDA.