A retrospective study of prevalence of anemia in pregnancy at tertiary care hospital, Ahmedabad

ABSTRACT

Background: Anemia is a commonly seen major health problem. It is a high-risk condition as it causes adverse effects on the mother as well as on the fetus during pregnancy. Pregnant women are most vulnerable group to anemia. Aim and Objectives: This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of anemia and associated factors contributing to anemia. Materials and Methods: It is a retrospective study done on pregnant patients during 3 months of period in tertiary care hospital, Ahmedabad. All the data including demographic factors such as age, education, socioeconomic status, parity, birth spacing, and investigative data were derived from case files. Results: Among 380 patients studied, 262 (68.9%) patients were anemic. In present study, anemia was most prevalent in age group of 23–30 years. One hundred and seventy-five (66.6%) patients belonged to lower socioeconomic class. Out of 262 patients, 150 patients (57.2%) were either illiterate or had primary education. About 54.2% of patients were multigravida. Out of 151 patients having birth spacing <2 years, 52.7% were having mild anemia and 12.5% were having severe anemia. One hundred and sixty-six cases (63.3%) were presented in second and third trimester of pregnancy. Conclusion: There is high prevalence of anemia in pregnant females. Multiple factors such as socioeconomic status, literacy rate, birth interval, awareness to problem, and gravida contribute to its occurrence.