Child complaining of leg, arm pain? Don’t ignore!

Manav Mander

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 19

Kids complaining of pain in the legs or arms, white patches on the body or delayed growth has become common these days and parents are unaware about the real cause behind it.

It is only when they visit a doctor that they come to know that the kid is either deficient in calcium or vitamin D. Of the total patients who visit the paediatric OPD at the Ludhiana Civil Hospital every day, 10 to 15 per cent cases are that of deficiency in calcium or vitamin D.

“Many such cases come forward every day, where parents are not even aware about the real cause of the problem. It is only during diagnosis, that they come to know that the kid is deficient in calcium or vitamin D. It is known as accidental screening,” said Dr Harpreet, paediatrician at the Civil Hospital.

“After seeing the symptoms, tests are conducted on the child to find out the real cause. Vitamin D test is not done at the Civil Hospital as it is costly. Parents get the test conducted on their own and the medicine is given after seeing the symptoms and condition,” he said.

Further, lack of awareness on part of parents is the main reason behind such emerging situations. “Kids should be given a balanced diet and proteins and calcium should form an essential part of their diet. Eggs, chicken, fish, cheese, milk, soya products should be included in their diet,” he said.

Dr Rajinder Gulati, Senior Medical Officer at Civil Hospital, Khanna, who is also an expert paediatrician, said kids suffering from anaemia were very common and now deficiency in calcium and vitamin D was also becoming common among them.

Less or no exposure to sunlight is making kids prone to deficiency in vitamin D. “Some kids are deficient in these from birth and they are given doses and sometimes administered injections according to the need. Everything is done after clinical examination,” he said.

• Calcium deficiency symptoms
• Poor appetite, pain in the legs and arms, white patches on the body, brittle finger nails, irritability, delayed growth 
• Source of calcium
• Milk, cheese, green vegetables, soya products, nuts, fish, eggs, beans, lentils, yogurt, oranges 
• Vit D deficiency symptoms
• Bone pain, skeletal deformities, fatigue, poor growth, late teething 
• Source of Vit D
• Orange juice, soya milk, beef liver, cheese, egg yolk, fatty fish, lean meat