Prevalence and Burden of disease of Anemia among Infant attending well-baby clinic at Primary Health Care Centers, Makkah Al-Mokarramah, 2022

Abstract

Background.

   Anemia is one of the most common nutritional deficiency diseases observed globally and affects more than a quarter of the world’s population. Globally, 41.8% pregnant women and close to one third of non-pregnant women (30.2%) are Anemic. Anemia during pregnancy contributes to 20% of all maternal deaths and it increases the risks of fetal, neonatal and overall infant mortality. Anemia is defined as a hemoglobin concentration of less than 11 g/dL in children. Anemia was found to be prevalent in 56.6 percent of the population. The significant prevalence of anemia shows that it might be a contributing factor in hospitalization, especially given the short length of stay and the likelihood that the patient was anemic at the time of enrollment. According to the World Health Organization, Iron Deficiency Anemia is a global dietary problem. At least one third of the population has been anemic at some point in their lives.

Aim of the study: To assessment Prevalence and Burden of disease of Anemia among Infant attending well-baby clinic at Primary Health Care Centres, Makkah Al-Mokarramah, 2022.

Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted at Makkah Al-Mokarramah primary healthcare centers (Al-Ka’akyah) in September, 2022. Infants who visited the well-baby clinic for vaccination/routine follow-up were selected through convenience sampling technique. A questionnaire filled out by the researcher through an interview with the mother of infants was utilized for data collection.

Results. Concerning the mother-related factors, Anemia was more significantly reported among infants delivered by caesarean section compared to those delivered by normal vaginal delivery (53.8% versus 20.9%, P=0.011). History of postpartum Anemia /depression among mothers was significantly associated with Anemia among infants (P<0.001). Infants whose mothers had history of chronic illness were more likely to have Anemia compared to those without such history (71.4% versus 20%, P=0.001). Both maternal and family histories of iron deficiency Anemia and parental hemoglobinopathies were significantly associated (P=0.005, P<0.001, P=0.003) with the Anemia of the participants, respectively.

Conclusion. Anemia among Infant is still the most prevalent type of anemia; however, a gap in assessment to Anemia is a common problem among infants aged one year in Makkah Al-Mokarramah as it affects almost one-quarter of them also iron deficiency anemia is still the most prevalent type of anemia.