Iron supplementation in pregnancy. General practitioners' compliance with official recommendations.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE--To compare general practitioners' routines regarding iron supplementation in pregnancy with national recommendations. Mailed questionnaire to general practitioners. A county in western Norway. 184 general practitioners. Descriptive registration of reported routines regarding assessment and supplementation of iron. 11% of general practitioners reported complete adherence to the national programme recommending iron supplements for everyone in the second half of pregnancy and use of s-ferritin estimation if Hb falls below 11 g/dl. 36% of the doctors prescribed iron supplements routinely irrespective of iron status. 87% reported use of s-ferritin estimation in antenatal care; usually on indication of low Hb, almost 20% as a routine screening in all pregnancies. General practitioners' compliance with national recommendations for iron supplementation in pregnancy is very low and probably reveals a need both for a review of the national recommendations and for an approach to increase compliance with given standards.