Correlation between Malaria and Anemia among 5 Years Children Attending some Primary Health Facilities in Kano Metropolis

Despite recent advances made in malaria prevention and control globally, malaria still remains a major health concern in Sub Saharan Africa, especially among children. This study aimed to determine the correlation between malaria and anemia among 5 years children attending some primary health facilities in Kano Metropolis, Kano Nigeria. The research was conducted at 3 different primary health care (Yan-Awaki, Sharada and Tukuntawa) centers in Kano Municipal. Demographic characteristics of the patients were collected using questionnaire. About five ml of blood was collected from each subject and malaria was diagnosed by examination of stained thick blood films. Hemoglobin concentration was determined using an auto-analyzer. Anemia was defined a hemoglobin concentration <11g/dl (13). The results showed that 163 out of 200 febrile subjects were positive for malaria and this accounted for 81.5% of the study population. From the result, more male were infected (with prevalence of 83%) than the female counterparts (80%). On the basis of the age of the study subject, infection is more prevalent among subjects aged 24 – 35 month (85.9%), followed by those less than 12 month (80.9%) and least prevalence was recorded among 48 – 60 month (75%). Also 84.6% of anemia positive subjects were anemic while only 13.5% of the non-malaria patients were anemic. It is concluded that there is strong correlation between malaria and anemia among study subjects in the study.