Publication: Prevalence of Anemia among Pregnant Women in Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital in Nepal
Date
2025
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Rapti Academy of Health Sciences (RAHS)
Abstract
Abstract:
Background: Anaemia in pregnancy is condition in which the blood doesn't have enough healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen resulting in poor maternal and fetal outcome. The primary objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of anaemia in pregnant women in tertiary care teaching hospital in Nepal.
Methods: A retrospective study was conducted among pregnant women who had delivered (vaginal or cesarean) at Rapti Academy of Health Sciences (RAHS) between April 14, 2023 to April 13, 2024. Ethical clearance from the Institutional Review Committee of RAHS was obtained and then data on participant’s age, ethnicity, obstetric history, and hemoglobin level were collected from the hospital records.
Results: Hospital records of 2,501 pregnant women were analyzed in this study, and the prevalence of anaemia was found to be 19.75%. Prevalence of anaemia was found to be highest among the pregnant women from Terai Madhesi ethnic background (45%). Among 484 women who had history of abortions, 110 had anaemia i-e. 23%. The more number pregnancies there were in a woman, the higher the prevalence of anaemia, from 19% in the first and second pregnancies to 41% in women with six pregnancies. Prevalence was seen lowest among women from age group of 15-19 years (0.4%) and highest among women aged 35 and above (24.3%).
Conclusions: The prevalence of anaemia in pregnant women was low (19.75%) compared to that of national data (46%). However, the prevalence varied across different ethnic groups. Anaemia was more prevalent among older women, those with higher gravidity, and those with a history of abortion, indicating a need for targeted antenatal monitoring in these groups.
Description
Prashansa Gurung
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Nepal Mediciti Hospital, Lalitpur, Nepal
Narayan Singh Gurung
Department of Emergency Medicine, Rapti Academy of Health Sciences, Ghorahi, Dang, Nepal
Shishir Kunwar
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Rapti Academy of Health Sciences, Ghorahi, Dang, Nepal
Shikha Tiwari
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Rapti Academy of Health Sciences, Ghorahi, Dang, Nepal
Roshni Gurung
International Nepal Fellowship, Pokhara, Kaski, Nepal
Madhu Sigdel
Department of Pathology, Rapti Academy of Health Sciences, Ghorahi, Dang, Nepal
Keywords
age, anaemia, pregnancy