The Prevalence of Vitamin A Deficiency and Associated Factors in Pregnant Women Receiving Prenatal Care at a Reference Maternity Hospital in Northeastern Brazil.

Sabina Bastos Maia,Malaquias Batista Filho,Camila Carvalho dos Santos,Suzana Lins da Silva,Maria Costa Caminha,Alex Rolland Souza

doi:10.3390/nu10091271

Abstract

Vitamin A is essential for mother and child; however, vitamin A deficiency (VAD) remains a public health issue in various countries, affecting around 19 million pregnant women. In Brazil, the scarcity and inconsistency of data have prevented the prevalence and epidemiological status of VAD from being established. This study aimed to analyze vitamin A nutritional status in women receiving prenatal care at a reference center in northeastern Brazil. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 676 women. Serum retinol was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. Subclinical infection was detected by measuring C-reactive protein (CRP). The World Health Organization criteria were used in the prevalence analysis, VAD classification level, and CRP effect evaluation. The prevalence of VAD (serum retinol <0.70 μmol/L) was 6.2% (95% confidence interval 4.5–8.3). In the univariate analysis, the variables significantly associated with VAD (p < 0.05) were having <12 years of schooling, being in the third trimester of pregnancy, and anemia. In the final multivariate model, the variables that remained significantly associated (p < 0.05) were being in the third trimester of pregnancy and anemia. VAD constituted a mild public health problem in this sample of pregnant women and was associated with the third trimester of pregnancy and maternal anemia.

Highlights

IntroductionIt is associated with bone development, exerts a protective effect on skin and mucosal integrity, plays an essential role in the functional capacity of the reproductive organs, participates in strengthening the immune system, acts in the development
Adequate vitamin A levels are indispensable for normal embryonic development [4], since the presence of severe vitamin A deficiency (VAD) in early pregnancy has been associated with malformations [5]
The present results show a greater prevalence of VAD (11.9%) in the third trimester compared to the first and second trimesters of pregnancy, with a negative linear correlation being found between gestational age and serum retinol levels

Summary

Introduction

It is associated with bone development, exerts a protective effect on skin and mucosal integrity, plays an essential role in the functional capacity of the reproductive organs, participates in strengthening the immune system, acts in the development. Adequate vitamin A levels are indispensable for normal embryonic development [4], since the presence of severe vitamin A deficiency (VAD) in early pregnancy has been associated with malformations [5]. Vitamin A plays a role in the morphology and physiology of the eyeball, by acting on cell differentiation and by guaranteeing the tissue integrity of the eyeball complex formation, in its anterior segment (sclera and cornea) and the fundus of the eye (retina) with its singular functions of cones and rods [3]. VAD is a predisposing and aggravating factor for comorbidities such as diarrhea, respiratory infections, measles, whooping cough, moderate and severe forms of malnutrition in children, and different dermatological lesions [3]

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