| Summary: | Rickets presents osteomalacia which is developed due to negative balance of calcium and / or phosphorus during growth and development. Therefore it appears only in children. The most common reason of insufficient mineralization is deficiency of vitamin D, which is necessary for inclusion of calcium in cartilage and bones. As result, proliferation of cartilage and bone tissue appears, creating calluses on typical places. Bones become soft and curve, resulting in deformities. Our present study included 86 infants, in whom, besides other diseases, clinical and laboratory signs of rickets were identified. In our study, rickets is most common (82.5%) in infants older than 6 months. By clinical picture, craniotabes is present in 46.5% of cases, Harisson groove in 26.7%, rachitic bracelets in 17.4%, rachitic rosary in 17.4% and carpopedal spasms in 2.3% of cases. Leading biochemical signs of vitamin D deficient rickets is hypophosphatemia (in 87.3% of cases), normal calcemia (in 75.6% of cases) and increased values of alkaline phosphatase (in 93% of cases). It has been shown that rickets in infant age may later affect higher incidence of juvenile diabetes, infection of lower respiratory tract, osteoporosis, and so on.
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