Vitamin D deficiency in children is classically called what condition?

Vitamin D deficiency in children is classically called what condition?

• A. Rickets
• B. Osteoporosis
• C. Scurvy
• D. Osteoarthritis

Answer: (A)

Deficiency of vitamin D in children prevents proper mineralization at the growth plates, leading to rickets. This results in soft, weak bones and characteristic deformities such as bowed legs, widening of the wrists and ankles, frontal bossing, and delayed closure of fontanelles. Rachitic changes at the costochondral joints produce the rachitic rosary. Lab findings often show low calcium and phosphate with a high alkaline phosphatase, reflecting increased bone turnover, and radiographs reveal cupping and fraying of the metaphyses. In adults, the same deficiency causes osteomalacia, while osteoporosis, scurvy, and osteoarthritis describe other conditions with different causes and features.

Deficiency of vitamin D in children prevents proper mineralization at the growth plates, leading to rickets. This results in soft, weak bones and characteristic deformities such as bowed legs, widening of the wrists and ankles, frontal bossing, and delayed closure of fontanelles. Rachitic changes at the costochondral joints produce the rachitic rosary. Lab findings often show low calcium and phosphate with a high alkaline phosphatase, reflecting increased bone turnover, and radiographs reveal cupping and fraying of the metaphyses. In adults, the same deficiency causes osteomalacia, while osteoporosis, scurvy, and osteoarthritis describe other conditions with different causes and features.