Moran-Lev H, et al. - In this prospective study, the researchers tested the hypothesis that hepcidin levels inversely correlate with vitamin D levels in anemic children during acute infection. This investigation was conducted on 90 patients (45 females, 45 males, mean age 7.3 ± 5 years) who were admitted to the pediatric ward. Within 72 h after admission, blood samples for IL-6, hepcidin, iron status parameters, and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OHD) were obtained. In children with acute infection, higher IL-6 and lower 25-OHD levels could lead to higher hepcidin levels and subsequently to hypoferremia and anemia.