Published online Sep 26, 2021. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v9.i27.8008
Peer-review started: April 29, 2021
First decision: May 23, 2021
Revised: June 1, 2021
Accepted: August 6, 2021
Article in press: August 6, 2021
Published online: September 26, 2021
Gestational anemia is a common complication of pregnancy and a serious public health problem worldwide. Several socio-demographic and economic characteristics of women influence the distribution of gestational anemia and should be taken into consideration in prenatal care. We hypothesized that pregnancy conditions and outcomes might be associated with gestational anemia.
The study aim was to investigate the association of pregnancy characteristics with anemia during pregnancy, exploring potential etiological factors of the disease. The results could be of significance for the prevention and management of gestational anemia, which might in turn help reduce adverse pregnancy outcomes and improve birth outcomes.
To assess the association of pregnancy parameters with gestational anemia.
A nested case-control study was conducted based on the Chinese Pregnant Women Cohort Study-Peking Union Medical College Project (CPWCS-PUMC). A total of 3172 women were included. Patient characteristics and gestational anemia occurrence were extracted, and univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were used to analyze the association of pregnancy parameters with gestational anemia.
Of the 3172 women, 14.0% were anemic; 46.4% were 25-30 years of age, and 21.9%resided in eastern, 15.7% in middle, 12.4% in western, 18.0% in southern, and 32.0% in northern regions of China. Most women (65.0%) had normal prepregnancy BMIs. Multivariable analysis showed that gestational anemia occurrence was lower in the middle and western regions than in the eastern region (OR = 0.406, 95%CI: 0.309-0.533, P < 0.001), higher in the northern region than that in the southern region (OR = 7.169, 95%CI: 5.139-10.003, P < 0.001), lower in full-term births than in premature birth (OR = 0.491, 95%CI: 0.316-0.763, P = 0.002), and higher in cases with premature rupture of membranes (OR = 1.404, 95%CI: 1.051-1.876, P = 0.02).
Gestational anemia continues to be a health problem in China, and geographical factors may contribute to the situation. Premature birth, and premature rupture of membranes may be associated with gestational anemia. Therefore, we should vigorously promote local policy reformation to adapt to the demographic characteristics for at-risk pregnant women, which would potentially reduce the occurrence of gestational anemia.
Local policy reformation of different regions should be made to adapt to the demographic characteristics.