[Anemia in pregnancy: characteristics in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, Hungary]

Nowadays anemia is the most common disease of internal medicine during pregnancy. It could cause harmful consequences both to mother and to child.

authors examined connection between the blood count data (hemoglobin, red cell mean corpuscular volume), the ferritin level and the pregnancy age, the mothers' age, schooling, the number of earlier pregnancies, abortions and miscarriages frequency of women who gave birth in 2008 at Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, Hungary.

Authors analyzed the records of health visitors in 2008 year in their county.

rate of anemia's occurrence in the first trimester was 2.54%, 0.71% in the second and 1.87% in the third trimester, and it was significantly frequented among the youthful (10.30%), the low schooled (5.55%), and the multipara women (2.56%). There was no difference in the rate of abortions; however, miscarriages were more frequent among pregnant women with anemia (7.14% vs. 5.46%). Low mean red cell corpuscular volume values were more frequent in all groups (6.06-22.88%) then the number of pregnant women with anemia. This fact refers to decreased iron stores in most cases. Ferritin level determination was made in 2.42% of cases only, but among these pathological low values was found in 93.1%.

Authors draw attention to the careful nursing of youthful, low schooled and multipara pregnant women, majority of them suffer from iron deficiency. They call attention to the right analysis of blood count, the start of correct iron supplementation in early pregnancy and the need of correction of iron stores before conception, too. Authors also give recommendations to this work on the basis of references.