Authors: Onyekpa IJ, Odugu BU, Onah LN.
Background: Anaemia is the commonest haematological abnormality diagnosed in pregnancy and continues to be a major public health problem in the developing, poor resource countries. It is associated with increased rates of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. The prevalence of anaemia among pregnant women is estimated to be very high in Nigeria and other developing countries. Knowledge of the current situation in our environment will help antenatal care-givers in prevention, early detection and prompt management of anaemia so as to mitigate its attendant complications in pregnancy.
Aim: To determine the prevalence and socio-demographic characteristics of anaemia among pregnant women in ESUTH.
Specific objectives
The objectives of this study were to determine:
• the prevalence of anaemia
• the prevalence of the different grades of anaemia
• the distribution of anaemia based on socio-demographic characteristics among pregnant women at the antenatal booking clinic of ESUTH.
Method: This was a cross-sectional study of 370 women who booked for antenatal care at the ESUTH from august 1, to December 31, 2020. Women who came for antenatal booking were counseled on the study and informed consent obtained. A proforma was used to collect their bio-data and other relevant obstetric and medical information. A sample of venous blood was collected and the haemoglobin concentration determined using haemoglobinometer.
Data analysis: Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences, SPSS version 20.0 for Windows. Frequencies and percentages were calculated and represented in tables and charts.
Result: The result showed that out of the 370 women recruited into the study 295 (65.1%) had anaemia of which 155 (41.9%) were mild, 69 (18.6%) were moderate and 17 (4.6%) were severe.
Conclusion and recommendation: Anaemia in pregnancy has an unacceptably high prevalence among our pregnant women. Efforts should be made to increase community health education/awareness on child spacing, consumption of balanced diet and early antenatal booking so as to prevent, enhance early detection and adequate treatment of anaemia in pregnancy.
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