Anemia and the Factors Associated with it in Pregnant Women Attending Al-Sabeen Maternal and Child Hospital in Sana’a, Yemen

Abstract

Introduction: Anemia in pregnant women is associated with adverse maternal and fetal outcomes and therefore it is important to find out the burden of the disease and the factors associated with it. Aims & Objectives: To find out the prevalence of anemia in Al-Sabeen Maternal and Child Hospital in Sana'a, Yemen and the factors associated with it. Place and duration of study: Al-Sabeen Maternal and Child Hospital and Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Sana'a University, Yemen; from January to December 2017 Material & Methods: This cross-sectional study included 449 pregnant women attending labor room, aged 15-44 years. Informed consent was taken from them, and demographic data was recorded. Two ml of blood was drawn, and hemoglobin levels were measured. Hemoglobin levels ?11 gm/dL were considered normal, 10-10.9 gm/dL as mild anemia, 7-9.9 gm/dL as moderate anemia, and <7 gm/dL as severe anemia. Data was entered and analyzed using SPSS 17.0.P-Value < 0.05 was taken as significant. Results: The mean±SD age of the participants was 26.11±6.19 yrs. Prevalence of anemia was 26.8%. Anemia was significantly associated with education level of the pregnant women, parity, and antenatal visits (p values < 0.05). Women living in rural areas had higher frequency of anemia than women living in urban areas (p value=0.013). Pregnant women taking iron supplementation had less frequency of anemia as compared to those not taking iron supplements (p- value = 0.026). Conclusion: Prevalence of anemia was high in pregnant women. Factors predisposing to anemia were illiteracy, living in rural areas, increased parity, no or few antenatal visits, and not taking iron supplementation.