Background: Anaemia is one of the most common nutritional deficiency diseases observed globally and affects more than a quarter of the world's population. Globally, 41.8% pregnant women and close to one third of non-pregnant women (30.2%) are anaemic. Anaemia during pregnancy contributes to 20% of all maternal deaths and it increases the risks of foetal, neonatal and overall infant mortality. In Kenya, according to the Ministry of Health, the prevalence of anaemia among pregnant women is 55.1%. Objective: To determine the prevalence and associated factors of anaemia among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic (ANC) at Pumwani Maternity Hospital (PMH). Methodology: A hospital based cross-sectional study design was conducted from 8 th June to 18 th August, 2015. Systematic random sampling method was used to select 258 pregnant women. Mothers who attended ANC during the study period and who met the inclusion criteria were interviewed and a capillary blood sample was taken. Hemoglobin level was determined by using HemoCue photometer. Data were cleaned, coded and fed into SPSS Version 20.0 for analysis. Descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation were used to describe selected variables. Pearson's chi-square test and odds ratio (OR) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) computed to find association between independent and dependent variables. Multivariate analysis was done to determine factors significantly and independently predicting * Corresponding author. O. T. Okube et al. 17anaemia during pregnancy. Results: The present study revealed that the prevalence of anaemia among the pregnant women was 57%. Advanced maternal age (>31 years) (AOR = 2.71; 95% CI = 1.25 -5.88; P = 0.012) more than 18 -24 years, government/private employed women (AOR = 2.94; 95% CI = 1.47 -5.88; P = 0.002) and self-employed women (AOR = 1.91; 95% CI = 1.03 -3.53; P = 0.039) compared to housewives, not taking iron/folic acid supplementation (IFAS) (AOR = 2.04; 95% CI = 1.14 -3.64; P = 0.016) and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) less than 23 cm (AOR = 2.52; 95% CI = 1.36 -4.67; P = 0.003) were found to be predictors of anaemia. Conclusion: Anaemia among pregnant women is found to be severe public health problem based on the World Health Organization classification of anaemia. Advanced age, employment, not taking IFAS during the current pregnancy and MUAC of less than 23 cm were significantly and independently associated with anaemia during pregnancy. Thus, special attention should be given to pregnant women who are employed and advanced in age. Moreover, they should be educated on the importance of taking iron and folic acid during pregnancy.

ObjectiveAssociation of lifestyle modification and pharmacological adherence among patients with hypertension attending a national referral hospital in Kenya.DesignDescriptive, cross-sectional.SettingMedical wards and outpatient clinic of a national referral hospital.ParticipantsPatients (n=229) diagnosed with primary hypertension for at least 6 months.Primary outcomesClinical makers, cholesterol levels, anthropometrics, lifestyle/dietary habits adjusted for age, gender and education; antihypertensive adherence; views on prevention of hypertension and adequacy of hypertension information.ResultsAgeing was associated with elevated diastolic blood pressure (BP) (p<0.05), heart rate (HR) and cholesterol. Females had higher body mass index (BMI). More males reported drinking alcohol and smoking (p<0.001), especially the highly educated. Higher BPs were observed in smokers and drinkers (p<0.05). Daily vegetables and fruits intake were linked to lower BP, HR and BMI (p<0.05). Intake of foods high in saturated fat and cholesterol were associated with raised HR (p<0.05). Respondents on antihypertensive medication, those engaged in healthy lifestyle and took their prescribed medications had lower mean BPs than those on medication only (138/85 vs 140/90). Few respondents (30.8%) considered hypertension as preventable, mainly the single and highly educated (p<0.05). Respondents (53.6%) believed they should stop taking their antihypertensive medication once hypertension is controlled.ConclusionMissed targets for BP control and hypertension-related risks are associated with ageing, female gender, fast food and animal fat intake. Alcohol and smoking is common in males associated with poor BP control. Daily vegetables and fruits intake are associated with better BP control and overall hypertension risk reduction. Observed suboptimal BP control despite pharmacological adherence suggests lifestyle modification is needed besides antihypertensive medication. Interventions should address modifiable risk factors aggravated by age and adverse lifestyles through adopting combined lifestyle modification, pharmacological adherence and tailored expert delivered hypertension-related information.

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Background: Preterm birth, delivery prior to 37 completed weeks or 259 days gestation, is a worldwide maternal and perinatal challenge and is a leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Preterm birth remains the leading cause of perinatal and postnatal mortality and morbidity especially in developing countries where the health care services are suffering from limited resources. Premature babies usually suffer from both immediate and long term consequences. Right after birth, they have difficulties in breathing, temperature regulation, bleeding, infection and other problems due to organ immaturity. Their growth and developmental milestones will also be affected leading poor physical, mental, educational and psychosocial problems as a long term consequences. Preterm deliveries were responsible for 1 million out of the 6.3 million deaths of children under 5 in 2013 [1]. In Kenyatta National hospital, few studies have been carried out to determine the prevalence and factors associated with preterm birth. Hence the aim of this study is to determine the prevalence and factors associated with preterm birth at Kenyatta national hospital (KNH), Nairobi, Kenya. Materials and Methods: This was a hospital based descriptive cross-sectional study involving randomly selected respondents (N = 183) from post natal ward of Kenyatta National Hospital. Systematic random sampling method was applied to recruit the study respondents. A pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire was employed to collect information on the possible determinants of Preterm birth. Data was analysed using SPSS software version 22.0. Descriptive analysis was done using mean and frequency proportion. Inferential analysis using chi-square test was used to establish association different variables. The ethical approval to conduct the study was obtained from KNH-University of Nairobi Ethical Review Committee (KNH-UoN ERC). Permission to collect data was sought from the KNH and consent was obtained from the selected respondents before admin- The determinants of preterm birth are multifactorial including history of abortion, preterm birth, urinary tract infection, hypertension and alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Most of these risk factors of preterm birth are controllable if reproductive age mothers are educated properly. It is very important for antenatal mothers to adhere to the guidelines of antenatal visits so that those at risk are spotted and close monitoring can done in order to reduce this high rate of preterm birth and its negative consequences. Strategies to avert the high prevalence of preterm birth and its associated morbidity and mortality must be given priority at national, regional and international levels, so that the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 4 can be achieved.