TITLE:
Prevalence and Factors Associated with Anaemia among Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Clinic in the Second and Third Trimesters at Pumwani Maternity Hospital, Kenya
AUTHORS:
Okubatsion Tekeste Okube, Waithira Mirie, Eunice Odhiambo, Wakasiaka Sabina, Michael Habtu
KEYWORDS:
Anaemia, Associated Factors, Pregnant Women, Prevalence
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
Vol.6 No.1,
January
19,
2016
ABSTRACT: 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 8th June to 18th 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 anaemia 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.