Paediatric patients aged >6 months and <16 years admitted to participating hospitals undergoing elective non-cardiac surgery.

The exclusion criteria for the study is as follows:

• Patient or parent refusal
• Surgery planned within 6 weeks from surgical outpatient visit
• 12 or folate deficiency or
• Known history of acquired iron overload, family history of haemochromatosis
• or thalassemia
• Known reason for anaemia (e.g. untreated vitamin B
• haemoglobinopathy)
• Treatment with oral iron, erythropoietin, IV iron therapy or blood transfusion
• in the previous 12 weeks
• Known hypersensitivity to oral iron or other contraindication to oral iron
• Temperature > 38.0 °C or receiving non-prophylactic antibiotics

• Red Cross Children's Hospital
• Tygerberg Hospital
• Albert Luthuli Hospital