Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research (May 2012)
Prevalence of Anaemia among Adolescent Girls: A One Year Cross-Sectional Study
Abstract
Introduction: India has the world’s highest prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia among women, with 60 to 70 percent of the adolescent girls being anaemic. Adolescence is considered as a nutritionally critical period of life. The pre-pregnancy nutritional status of young girls is important as it impacts on the course and the outcome of their pregnancy. Hence, the health of adolescent girls demands special attention Objectives: To assess the prevalence and the severity of anaemia among adolescent girls in rural areas; To study the association of anaemia with respect to the age of the participants and their socio-economic status. Materials and Methods: The present study was a cross-sectional study which was conducted for a period of one year from Jan 2008 – Dec 2008 at villages which were under Vantamuri PHC, a field practice area of J.N Medical College, Belgaum. A total of 840 adolescent girls (10-19 years of age) were included in the study. A pre-designed and pre-tested proforma was used to obtain the details of the socio-demographic variables. A relevant clinical examination of the participants was done. Following this, 2ml of blood was obtained by venipuncture. The blood samples were analyzed by using an automated cell counter. The diagnosis was established as anaemia when the haemoglobin level was less than 12gm/dl. Results: The prevalence of anaemia was 41.1% (with that of severe anaemia being 0.6%, that of moderate anaemia being 6.3% and that of mild anaemia being 34.6%. It was observed that the prevalence of anaemia was high in late adolescents (15- 19yrs) as compared to that in the early adolescents (10-14yrs). A majority of the girls had mild anaemia.The prevalence of anaemia was considerably high among the girls who belonged to the low socio-economic status. Conclusion: A high prevalence of anaemia was found among the adolescent girls, which was considerably high in the late adolescents. There was a significant association of anaemia with the socio-economic status. The prevalence of anaemia was high in girls who belonged to the low socio-economic status.
