Anaemia in pregnancy: Plasmodium falciparum infection is an important cause in primigravidae in Hoima district, western Uganda
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Infection with Plasmodium falciparum is a major cause of anaemia in pregnancy, especially in primigravidae. Of 853 primigravidae visiting an antenatal clinic in Hoima district, western Uganda, for the first time, 530 (62.1%) were found to have P. falciparum parasitaemias and 305 (57.5%) of these had at least 1000 parasites/μl blood. Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia was significantly associated with anaemia (relative risk = 0.84, with 95% confidence limits = 0.74-0.96; P = 0.01). Malarial parasites were detected in > 80% of the women who had severe anaemia (P = 0.0008) and haemoglobin concentrations decreased with increasing intensity of infection (P = 0.03). Malarial hyper-reactive splenomegaly was associated with high parasite density (P = 0.01) and low haemoglobin level (P < 0.0001). Effective measures aimed at prevention of malaria and anaemia in pregnancy, especially in primigravidae, would significantly reduce anaemia and its deleterious effects on both the mother and the baby.
Original language | English |
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Journal | Annals of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology |
Volume | 93 |
Issue number | 5 |
Pages (from-to) | 457-465 |
Number of pages | 9 |
ISSN | 0003-4983 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 24 Aug 1999 |
ID: 224708355