Anemia prevalence & effect on feto-placental axis with treatment with iron, folic acid & protein powder

Abstract

Aim: To find out the specific nutritional deficiency in the pregnant anaemic mothers and to see the improvement in birth weight and placental weight with haematinic, folate and antihelminthics.

Materials and Methods: Total 111 patients were studied at 24±4 weeks of gestation with a view to know etio-pathogenesis of anaemia in pregnancy by serum iron, folate and protein studies. Patients with Hb less than 8.5 g% were given oral haematinics and protein and followed up to the term. Their maternal cord blood and placentae were collected at the time of delivery to see the effect of therapy on foeto-placental axis.

Results: Out of 88 anaemic mothers 85 (96.6%) had either serum iron or folate deficiency or both. 19.3% patients had pure iron deficiency.Incidence ofpure folate deficiency was37.5% and 39.8% combined iron and folate deficiency. Control group with haemoglobin ≥11.0 g% had significant number of women with folate, iron, or deficiency of both. We have observed significant rise in placental weight & birth weight of newborn after hematinic & protein therapy.

Conclusion: Serum iron, and folate studies should be done to detect early deficiency ofironand folate as haemoglobin is not a true indicator of early deficiency. Correction of anaemia with haematinics and proteins provides a reasonable good indicators of their deficiency in pregnancy. The severe anaemia was associated with low proteins and albumin indicating that severe anaemia often coexists with hypoproteinamia.