Prevalence of anaemia in pregnancy at antenatal care booking in a teaching hospital in Southern Nigeria

Background: Anaemia in pregnancy is the commonest haematological condition seen in pregnant women in most developing countries. It is a global public health problem causing maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. Objective was to determine the prevalence of anaemia and associated socio-demographic factors among pregnant women at booking at Rivers State University Teaching Hospital (RSUTH).Methods: A retrospective study conducted from 1st January, 2015 to 31st December, 2020 at the antenatal clinic (ANC) of RSUTH. The laboratory records of 9990 pregnant women who booked for antenatal care were retrieved and reviewed. This included the socio-demographic characteristics and routine investigations. Data was extracted, coded and analyzed using the IBM statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 23.0 (Armonk, NY). P value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.Results: Total number of women who booked for antenatal care was 9990 women. Of this, 8635 women were anaemic giving a prevalence rate of 86.4%. Mild anaemia was seen in 7061 (70.68%); 1546 (15.48%) had moderate anaemia and 28 (0.28%) had severe anaemia. Of 8635 (86.4%) women who were anaemic, 1647 (19.07%), 5036 (58.32%) and 1952 (22.61%) were seen in the first, second and third trimesters respectively. Mean and modal packed cell volume (PCV) were 29±3.1% and 29% respectively. The range of PCV was 18-42%. Mean age was 31±4.7 years and age range was 15-48 years. Modal parity was zero. Nulliparous and multiparous women accounted for 3586 (35.9%) and 3751 (37.5%) of the women respectively. There was a significant correlation between anaemia and age, parity, level of education, occupation and genotype at booking.Conclusions: The prevalence of anaemia was unacceptably high. There is need for education on anaemia at the antenatal clinics and close monitoring of the interventional measures put in place to prevent anaemia in pregnancy, in order to improve the pregnancy outcome.