(41) Ferritin Screening in Female High School Student-Athletes Identifies Many who have Iron Deficiency

Background: Iron deficiency (ID) is highly prevalent among teenage females. It has been associated with impaired concentration and fatigue, and it may affect both academic and athletic performance. In this study, we sought to quantify the prevalence of ID in teenage female student-athletes, and to correlate ID with fatigue, athletic performance, and academic performance.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of female student-athletes in a suburban high school. After IRB approval, students were approached for study enrollment during a sports team practice session. After obtaining parental consent, students had ferritin testing and assessments of fatigue, athletic performance, and academic performance. Iron deficiency was defined as ferritin < 30 ng/mL.

Results: Low ferritin ( < 30 ng/mL) was found in 8/23 (35%) female student-athletes. Only two had prior awareness that they had iron deficiency. Fatigue, athletic performance, and academic performance will be reported in a 2025 NASPAG presentation.

Conclusions: In this cross-sectional study of female student-athletes, we found that iron deficiency is common. Our finding, 35% with low ferritin, is consistent with the prevalence of iron deficiency among teenage females in a large NHANES-based cross-sectional study by Weyand, et al. Most of the students found to have ID in our study had no prior knowledge that they had iron deficiency. This study highlights the importance of iron deficiency screening in female student-athletes. More student-athlete screening will be reported in a 2025 NASPAG presentation.