Abstract Many investigators found that iron deficiency
anemia (IDA) had a great influence on cognitive
functions in infants and children. However, studies of
such topic in adults are few and controversial. We
prospectively assessed the possible influence of IDA
and iron supplementation (for 3 months) on cognitive
function and intelligence of 28 young adults with IDA.
We used group of hematological, cognitive, neurophysiological
tests for assessment including: minimental
state examination (MMSE), Wechsler memory
scale-revised (WMS-R), Wechsler adult intelligence
scale-revised (WAIS-R), event-related potentials
(ERPs), and electroencephalography (EEG). Compared
to controls, patients demonstrated lower scores of
different cognitive tests (MMSE, WMS-R, and WAISR),
which showed significant improvement after
treatment. Prolongation of ERPs latencies (N200 and
P300) and reduction in their amplitudes (P200 and
P300) were identified with significant increase in
amplitude occurred after treatment. EEG abnormalities
were observed in 55% of patients which showed
improvement in 35% after treatment. Positive correlation
was identified before and after treatment between hemoglobin levels andMMSE(P = 0.01, 0.05),
total verbal (P = 0.04) and performance (P = 0.05,
0.04) IQ scores. Negative correlation was identified
between before and after treatment between P300
latency and total IQ of WAIS-R (P = 0.03, 0.008) and
hemoglobin level (P = 0.4, 0.01). Positive correlation
was found before and after treatment between P300
amplitude and total IQ (P = 0.028, 0.01) and serum
iron (P = 0.01, 0.001). In conclusion, IDA is a significant factor in cognitive performance in adult population,which can be partially reversed by treatment.