Proportion of anaemia and factors associated with it among the attendees of the antenatal clinic in a teaching institute of northeast India

Abstract

Background:

Anaemia is an important cause of maternal morbidity and mortality in India. According to National Family Health Survey-4, the prevalence of anaemia among pregnant women in Tripura was 54.4%, but the proportion of anaemic women attending antenatal clinics is not known.

Objectives:

To find out the proportion of anaemia and associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at Agartala Government Medical College.

Materials and Method:

This hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 200 pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic of Agartala Government Medical College from 14 ^th July to 7 ^th August 2019 chosen by consecutive sampling.

Results:

Majority (69.5%) of the women were aged either ≤ 25 years, 94.5% were Hindu, 37% belonged to scheduled caste community, 58.5% from a rural area, 28% belonged to BG Prasad's class II socioeconomic status and 52.5% had only primary education. The proportion of anaemia was found to be 60%. It was 63.3% among ≤ 25 years age group and 62.9% among those who studied up to primary level. Mean (SD) Hb level was 9.9 ± 0.6 g%. Among the anaemic, 57.5% were primigravida and 45% were carrying the third trimester of pregnancy. Only 1% of the study women reportedly consumed either 200 or more number of iron tablets. Age < 25 years, (OR = 1.824, 95% CI = 1.231–2.108, P = 0.003), holding BPL or similar ration cards (OR = 3.482, 95% CI = 1.201–5.371, P = 0.031) and getting at <18 years (OR = 4.482, 95% CI = 2.317–6.451, P = 0.003) were identified as the significant predictors of anaemia during pregnancy.

Conclusion:

The proportion of anaemia among attendees of the antenatal clinic was higher than the state prevalence of anaemia among pregnant women. Lower literacy, lower socioeconomic status, rural residence, etc., had significant associations with anaemia in this population.