Vol. 6, Issue 2, Part C (2024)

Background: Nutritional rickets in children aged 0 to 5 years result from vitamin D, calcium, or phosphate deficiencies, leading to bone deformities, delayed growth, and muscle weakness. Insufficient dietary intake, limited sun exposure, and underlying health conditions often contribute to the development of rickets. 
Aim of the study: This study aimed to analyze the clinical features and identify the etiologies of nutritional rickets in young children. 
Methods: This prospective cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Pediatrics Sher- E-Bangla Medical College, Barisal, Bangladesh, from January 2022 to January 2024. Purposively, 67 children aged 0 to 5 years with nutritional rickets were enrolled as the study subjects. Nutritional rickets diagnosis was based on clinical, radiological, and biochemical parameters. Data were analyzed by using MS Office tools. 
Results: Nearly half (49.3%) of our participants were from the <2 years age group; most of the participants were female (54%). The spectrum of presentation indicated that common deformities included the bow leg (52.2%) and knock knee (25.4%) among lower limb issues. The vitamin D intake status revealed that 58.2% of individuals reported no intake, whereas 23.9% had an irregular intake. The etiology data indicated that low calcium intake accounted for 14.9% of cases, while poor vitamin D status was responsible for 34.3%. Anemia was found in 10.4% of cases. Conclusion: Female children under 2 years are particularly susceptible to nutritional rickets. Potential risk factors include low or irregular vitamin D intake, along with low calcium intake, poor vitamin D status, and anemia as common etiologies.