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Prevalence of anemia and associated risk factors among pregnant women attending antenatal care in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 November 2021

Bably Sabina Azhar
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Nutrition and Food Technology, Islamic University, Kushtia, Bangladesh
Md Shofikul Islam*
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Nutrition and Food Technology, Islamic University, Kushtia, Bangladesh
Md Rezaul Karim
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Nutrition and Food Technology, Islamic University, Kushtia, Bangladesh
*
*Author for correspondence: Md Shofikul Islam, Department of Applied Nutrition and Food Technology, Islamic University, Kushtia, Bangladesh. E-mail: shofik.anft@gmail.com
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Abstract

Background:

Anemia has created attention worldwide because of its adverse effects on the mother and the fetus during pregnancy. A large body of evidence has shown that pregnant women are the most vulnerable group to anemia.

Objectives:

This study aims to determine the prevalence of anemia, and associated risk factors, among pregnant women attending antenatal care (ANC) at government and private hospitals in Bangladesh.

Methods:

This cross-sectional study included 424 pregnant women, who visited hospitals for ANC from January to July 2019. We used a simple random sampling technique to select study subjects. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and participant’s current medical record cards. SPSS software was used for analyzing data.

Results:

The prevalence of anemia was 62.5% and significantly (P < 0.001) higher in the subjects attending ANC in government hospitals (68.7%) than in private (55.0%) hospitals. The prevalence of the severity of anemia was 28.3% mild, 36.9% moderate, and 3.40% severe in government hospitals while in private hospitals was 14.7% mild, 39.8% moderate, and 0.5% severe anemia. Anemia was significantly associated with maternal age 20–25 years [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.9] and 26–30 years (AOR = 2.37), monthly family income (300–500) US$ (AOR = 2.76), and ANC in government hospitals (AOR = 2.02), the parity [multiparous (AOR = 1.92)], gravidity [multigravid (AOR = 1.63)], contraception [no contraception (AOR = 2.50), and iron supplement [no iron supplement (AOR = 0.64).

Conclusions:

The result suggests that pregnant women should receive routine ANC and recognize iron supplementation during pregnancy. Finally, the results of this study are particularly relevant for pregnant women who are receiving ANC.

Information

Type
Research
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press
Figure 0

Table 1. Sociodemographic characteristics of the study participants

Figure 1

Table 2. Obstetric and maternal characteristics of the study participants

Figure 2

Table 3. Medical and physical findings of the study participants

Figure 3

Table 4. Dietary characteristics of study participants

Figure 4

Table 5. Prevalence and degree of anemia of study participants

Figure 5

Table 6. Association of risk factors and severity of anemia in pregnancy

Figure 6

Table 7. Effect of different risk factors on prevalence of anemia among pregnant women