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Cited by 104Attention Deficit Hyperactivity DisorderIron Metabolism and DisordersTrace Elements in Health

Iron Status in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Open access
Wang, Yan, Huang, Lan, Zhang, Li, Qu, Yi, Mu, Dezhi·2017·PLOS ONE
DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0169145PMC PMC5207676
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common psychiatric disorders in children. However, the pathogenesis of ADHD remains unclear. Iron, an important trace element, is implicated in brain function and dopaminergic activity. Recent studies have investigated the association between iron deficiency and ADHD, but the results are inconsistent. METHODS: A systemic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science and Cochrane Library databases was supplemented by manual searches of references of key retrieved articles. Study quality was evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. The standardised mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using a random-effects model. H2 and I2 were used to evaluate the heterogeneity, and sensitivity, subgroup and meta-regression analyses were conducted to explore the reason of heterogeneity. RESULTS: The search yielded 11 studies published before July 25, 2016. Of these, 10 studies, comprising 2191 participants and 1196 ADHD cases, reported serum ferritin levels, and six studies, comprising 617 participants and 369 ADHD cases, reported serum iron levels. Serum ferritin levels were lower in ADHD cases (SMD = -0.40, 95% CI = -0.66 to -0.14). However, we found no correlation between serum iron levels and ADHD (SMD = -0.026, 95% CI = -0.29 to 0.24). Meta-regression analysis indicated that publication year, age, gender, sample size, and Hb levels did not significantly influence the pooled estimates of serum ferritin. CONCLUSION: Lower serum ferritin rather than serum iron is associated with ADHD in children.

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Wang, Y., Huang, L., Zhang, L., Qu, Y., & Mu, D.
Affiliations
  • Sichuan University (CN)
  • University of California, San Francisco (US)
Corresponding author
Mu, Dezhi
ORCID
Venue
PLOS ONE
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Published
2017-01-03
Volume
12
Issue
1
Pages
e0169145
ISSN
1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0169145
PMC
PMC5207676
OpenAlex
W2570209302
Cited by
104
References
4
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 4
FWCI
1.54
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • PLoS ONE (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
  • Science and Technology Bureau of Sichuan province (2014SZ0149, 2016TD0002)
  • National Natural Science Foundation of China (81330016, 81630038, 81270724)
  • Major State Basic Research Development Program (2013CB967404, 2012BAl04B00)
  • Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China (IRT0935)
  • clinical discipline program (neonatology) from the Ministry of Health of China (1311200003303)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Hematology › Iron Metabolism and Disorders
  • Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Trace Elements in Health
Keywords
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, iron deficiency, serum ferritin, serum iron, children, trace elements, dopaminergic activity, iron status
MeSH terms
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Brain, Child, Dopamine, Female, Ferritins, Humans, Iron, Male, Sample Size

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