Demographic factors determining compliance to iron supplementation in pregnancy in Oyo State, Nigeria.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Iron deficiency anaemia in pregnancy has irreversible negative consequence on infant cognitive development and increases maternal morbidity and mortality. Iron supplementation ameliorates this effect. The salutary effect of iron supplementation on improvement of haemoglobin levels in pregnancy has been documented in various studies. However factors affecting the compliance of women with prescribed iron supplements are yet to be well studied, particularly at primary care levels. This study describes the compliance rate and demographic factors influencing use of iron supplements among pregnant women at primary care level. METHOD: This is a cross sectional descriptive study. Five hundred and ninety seven women attending randomly selected primary care centres were studied. Demographic characteristics and information on use of iron supplements were collected. Haemoglobin level was also determined for each woman. RESULTS: Compliance rate was 37.5%. Prevalence of anaemia was higher among noncompliant women than those complying (18% v 15%, chi2 7.5, p = 0.006). Haemoglobin level was higher among women complying with iron supplements compared with those not complying (11.4 g/dl v 11.0 g/dl, t = 9.3, p = 0.002). Single and teenage mothers and those aged 35 years and above were less likely to be compliant. Married women, those in urban location, and those aged 20-29 years were more compliant with iron supplementation. CONCLUSIONS: Pregnancy among teenage and single mothers is associated with a significantly higher risk of non-compliance with iron supplementation. Further studies are recommended to understand the reasons for non-compliance among these groups of women.