Abstract
Author(s): MaÅgorzata RadoÅ-Pokracka, Hubert Huras, Joanna SpaczyÅska, PrzemysÅaw Janas, Piotr Ossowski
Introduction. Iron is an essential element for life and normal development of the organism. This micronutrient is delivered to the organism with food. The aim of the study was to determine the influence of antenatal anemia in pregnant women on the course of labor and neonatological outcomes. Material and methods. The prospective study was conducted in a group of 450 pregnant women with singleton pregnancies of physiological course who had complete blood count performed up to seven days before childbirth. Venous blood tests were conducted in the Diagnostic Department of the University Hospital in Krakow, Poland. The statistical analysis involved the Student’s t-test for independent samples. Relationships between variables were assessed with the chisquared test, and odds ratios were calculated using the logistic regression analysis. Results. Pregnancy was statistically shorter in women with anemia (264.5 days). The odds ratio (OR) for childbirth prior to gestational week 37 in patients with anemia compared with healthy women was 3.56 (95% CI 1.93–6.55). The mean Apgar score in the group of anemic patients was 9.23. It was lower in a statistically significant way than in the group of healthy women. The mean birth weight of children born of anemic mothers was 3,082.5 g. The groups differed in a statistically significant way also in terms ofaverage neonatal body length. Conclusions.Antenatal anemia is conductive to early conclusion of pregnancy, but is not associated with a risk of emergency Cesarean section. The risk of a lower Apgar score and low birth weight was increased in the group of anemic patients.