Anaemia in Women Attending Labour. Frequency and Risk Factors Evaluation

Abstract

The aim of this prospective study was to determine the frequency and degree of anaemia among pregnant women attending labour. One hundred-seventy seven pregnant women were included. We found that 78 (44.1%) women were anaemic, of them 64 (36.2%) having mild anaemia, 10 (5.6 %) with moderate anaemia and 4 (2.3%) with sever anaemia. The study revealed that low educational level, lack of antenatal care, increasing parity, lack of iron supplementation, close spaced pregnancy and antepartum haemorrhage were significant predisposing factor for the development of anaemia. On the other hand, the effects of the maternal age, lactation and postpartum haemorrhage on the development of anaemia were not significant. In conclusion, the frequency of anaemia among pregnant women at labour was high which necessitates an active intervention toward modifying the risk factors of anaemia.