Abstract:To assess the prevalence and risk factors of anaemia in pregnancy and recommend a cut-off value for antenatal women in developing countries, a cross sectional study was carried in the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt, a 523 bed tertiary health care institution in Nigeria. 1371 apparently healthy asymptomatic pregnant women visiting the antenatal clinic for the first time were enrolled for the study. Another 60 age-matched non-pregnant apparently healthy women served as controls. Haemoglobin concentration, malaria, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)S, haemoglobin electrophoretic pattern and C-reactive protein as marker of infection were investigated using standard haematological and serological procedures. Anaemia in pregnancy (Hb <11.0g/dl) and (Hb<10.0g/dl) were found to be 23.2% and 6.7% respectively. The aetiology of anaemia was found to be multifactorial; 40.2% had anaemia of infection, 20.3% had Plasmodium falciparum alone, 8.5% had HIV alone, 2.5% had HIV and malaria parasite co-infection; 8.9% undetermined infections and 0.6% had sickle cell anaemia. There is moderate prevalence of anaemia in pregnancy in this part of the world. Since the mean Hb value of the pregnant women in this study was 11.62±1.21g/dl and the pregnant women with Hb values around 10g/dl are apparently healthy, a cut-off value of 10.0g/dl may be considered ideal for defining anaemia in pregnancy in developing countries.

A population-based-cross-sectional survey was carried out to investigate the potential risk of exposure to premium motor spirit (PMS) fumes in Calabar, Nigeria, among Automobile Mechanics (AM), Petrol Station Attendants (PSA) and the general population. Structured questionnaire was administered on the randomly chosen subjects to elicit information on their exposure to PMS. Duration of exposure was taken as the length of work in their various occupations. Venous blood was taken for methaemoglobin (MetHb) and packed cells volume (PCV). Mean MetHb value was higher in AM (7.3%) and PSA (5.8%) than in the subjects from the general population (2.7%). PCV was lower in PSA (30.8%), than AM (33.3%) and the subjects from the general population (40.8%). MetHb level was directly proportional, and PCV inversely related, to the duration of exposure. The study suggested increased exposure to petrol fumes among AM, PSA, and MetHb as a useful biomarker in determining the level of exposure to benzene in petrol vapour.

Asymptomatic malaria infection is a common feature of malaria endemic regions in the tropics. In this prospective cross sectional survey, involving 240 children aged 1 to 8 years (Boys = 117, Girls = 123; Ratio 1:1.05), the median platelet count was 115 x 10(9)/L (IQR 97.5-190). Thirty-three out of 240 (13.75%) of the children had thrombocytopenia (platelet count < 100 x 10(9)/L). Malaria parasite was found to exert significant reduction in platelet count. This reduction was more pronounced in children under 5 years and also at higher parasite counts. An inverse relationship was established between parasite density and platelet count (y = -0.017x + 96.2, r = -0.2). Thrombocytopenia is not only a feature of acute malaria infection but also that of asymptomatic malaria infection in the tropics and might be a useful indicator of malaria in children.

Parasite density estimation using the assumed count of 8.0 x 10(9)/L might result in over-estimation of the parasite burden. The WBCs of individual patients should always be estimated when parasite density is required.

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