Hematological and biochemical profiling of iron deficiency anemia among adolescent girls: A cross-sectional study from rural areas of the jungle Mahal, West Bengal, India.

BACKGROUND: Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is a major public health concern among adolescents, adversely affecting physical growth, cognitive abilities, and maternal future health. Our study evaluated the incidence of anemia and the hematological and biochemical parameters of iron deficiency among adolescent girls in the Jungle Mahal area of West Bengal, India. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted between May 2022 and June 2025 among 372 adolescent girls. Blood samples were analyzed for hemoglobin, complete blood count, and iron-status biomarkers, including serum iron (μg/dL), ferritin (μg/dL), TIBC (μg/dL), UIBC (μg/dL), and transferrin saturation (%). RESULTS: The overall prevalence of anemia was 52.42%, with rates of 11.3% in early, 34.9% in mid, and 53.8% in late adolescence. Serum iron (28.84 ± 26.29), transferrin saturation (16.88 ± 6.50), and serum ferritin (13.63 ± 0.34) were significantly lower in the severe IDA group compared to the control group. However, TIBC (412.77 ± 197.53) and UIBC (386.95 ± 192.55) were substantially higher. RBC and HCT have a significant positive correlation with Hb (r = 0.866 and 0.923, respectively). RDW-CV and PWD showed negative correlations (r = -0.273 and - 0.508) with Hb. CONCLUSION: The present study reveals that anemia affects a small proportion of adolescent girls in early and mid-adolescence, but is more frequent in late adolescence. The burden of anemia among rural adolescent girls could be reduced by strengthening community-based screening, nutrition education, iron supplementation, and awareness programmes.