Antenatal iron and folic acid supplementation use by pregnant women in Khartoum, Sudan.

BACKGROUND: Anaemia during pregnancy can lead to adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes. The WHO recommends that all pregnant women in areas where anaemia is prevalent receive supplements of iron and folic acid. However, due to many factors, the use of iron and folic acid supplementation is still low in many countries. This study was conducted to assess the rates of iron-folic supplementation and the associated factors during pregnancy and the effects of taking iron-folic acid supplementation on rates of maternal anaemia and low birth weight (LBW) infants. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Khartoum Hospital, Sudan. Enrolled women answered a questionnaire on socio-demographics characteristics, their pregnancy and delivery. RESULTS: Of 856 women, 788 (92.1%) used iron-folic acid supplementation during pregnancy and 65.4% used folic acid. While place of residence, occupation and level of education were not associated with iron-folic acid usage, older age (OR = 3, CI = 1.4-6.3) and use of antenatal care (OR = 14.3, CI = 7.4-27.5) were associated with iron-folic acid use. Primiparity (OR = 3.8, CI = 1.9-7.6), maternal employment (OR = 3.9, CI = 2.25-6.77) and use of antenatal care (OR = 7.9, CI = 4.1-15) were the factors associated with folic acid. Using iron-folic acid was protective against anaemia (OR = 0.39, CI = 0.2-0.7) and LBW infants (OR = 0.3, CI = 0.17-0.68). CONCLUSION: There was a high rate of iron-folic acid supplementation use among pregnant women in Khartoum, Sudan, which was beneficial in preventing anaemia in expectant mothers and infants of LBW.

Red blood cell distribution width is not correlated with preeclampsia among pregnant Sudanese women.

BACKGROUND: Preeclampsia is a leading cause of maternal and perinatal mortality worldwide. The exact etiology of preeclampsia is unknown, but the inflammatory process is postulated as one of the etiologies. Red blood cell distribution width (RDW) is a measure of anisocytosis (variation of red cell size) and is associated with hypertension and diabetic ketoacidosis. There are few data on the association between RDW and preeclampsia. This study aimed to investigate the association between RDW and preeclampsia. METHODS: A case-control study was conducted at Khartoum Hospital, Sudan, during June to August 2012. Cases were women with preeclampsia and healthy women were controls. Sociodemographic characteristics, obstetrics, and clinical data were recorded. The complete blood count, including RDW, was measured using an automated hematology analyzer. RESULTS: The cases and controls (65 women in each arm) were matched in their basic characteristics. There was no difference in the mean (SD) RDW between women with preeclampsia and controls (14.5 ± 1.8% vs. 14.4 ± 1.4%, P = 0.710). There was also no difference in the mean RDW between women with mild and severe preeclampsia (14.7 ± 1.9% vs. 13.9 ± 1.4%, P = 0.144. In logistic regression, there was no association between RDW and preeclampsia (OR = 0.9, CI = 0.7-1.1, P = 0.952). CONCLUSIONS: RDW levels are not associated with the presence or severity of preeclampsia. VIRTUAL SLIDES: The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1206247718115175.

Intra-partum fever and cerebral palsy in Khartoum, Sudan.

BACKGROUND: Cerebral palsy (CP) is a major cause of childhood disability. There are various maternal and neonatal predictors associated with the development of CP, and they are variable across different populations. This case-control study was designed to investigate maternal and neonatal predictors of CP at Khartoum pediatric neurology clinics. Data (maternal sociodemographic characteristics and neonatal expected predictors) were collected from mothers of children with CP and healthy controls using questionnaires. RESULTS: One hundred and eleven cases of CP and 222 controls were included. Spastic CP was the most common type (69.4%). In logistic regression, maternal age, parity, birth weight, and sex were not associated with CP. However, maternal fever (OR = 8.4, CI = 2.3-30.5; P = 0.001), previous neonatal death (OR = 5.4, CI = 1.8-16.2; P = 0.003), and poor sucking (OR = 30.5, CI = 10.0-93.1; P < 0.001) were predictors of CP. CONCLUSIONS: Fever during labor is a significant risk factor for developing CP in children. Further efforts are required for labor management to prevent CP in this setting.