Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is the most common human 
enzymopathy and in Sub-Saharan Africa, is a significant cause of infection- and 
drug-induced hemolysis and neonatal jaundice. Our goals were to determine the 
prevalence of G6PD deficiency among Nigerian children of different ethnic 
backgrounds and to identify predictors of G6PD deficiency by analyzing vital 
signs and hematocrit and by asking screening questions about symptoms of 
hemolysis. We studied 1,122 children (561 males and 561 females) aged 1 month to 
15 years. The mean age was 7.4 ± 3.2 years. Children of Yoruba ethnicity made up 
the largest group (77.5%) followed by those Igbo descent (10.6%) and those of 
Igede (10.2%) and Tiv (1.8%) ethnicity. G6PD status was determined using the 
fluorescent spot method. We found that the overall prevalence of G6PD deficiency 
was 15.3% (24.1% in males, 6.6% in females). Yoruba children had a higher 
prevalence (16.9%) than Igede (10.5%), Igbo (10.1%) and Tiv (5.0%) children. The 
odds of G6PD deficiency were 0.38 times as high in Igbo children compared to 
Yoruba children (p=0.0500). The odds for Igede and Tiv children were not 
significantly different from Yoruba children (p=0.7528 and 0.9789 respectively). 
Mean oxygen saturation, heart rate and hematocrit were not significantly 
different in G6PD deficient and G6PD sufficient children. The odds of being G6PD 
deficient were 2.1 times higher in children with scleral icterus than those 
without (p=0.0351). In conclusion, we determined the prevalence of G6PD 
deficiency in Nigerian sub-populations. The odds of G6PD deficiency were 
decreased in Igbo children compared to Yoruba children. There was no association 
between vital parameters or hematocrit and G6PD deficiency. We found that a 
history of scleral icterus may increase the odds of G6PD deficiency, but we did 
not exclude other common causes of icterus such as sickle cell disease or 
malarial infection.