IMPACT OF ANAEMIA DURING THIRD TRIMESTER OF PREGNANCY ON BIRTH OUTCOMES IN TATALE AND ZABZUGU DISTRICTS, GHANA

Anaemia in pregnancy continues to be a major public health problem affecting 45% of pregnant women in Ghana and 47% in the Northern Region. This study examined the impact of anaemia during the third trimester of pregnancy on birth outcomes in Tatale- Sanguli and Zabzugu districts. The study employed a prospective cohort design using simple random sampling technique to sample 359 respondents. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 25.0 and word 2016. The results showed that 77.4% of the respondents were not educated on the signs and symptoms of anaemia. It was revealed that the prevalence of anaemia among respondents was 72% in the study settings. The results showed that the pregnant women who did not have a say in household decision making on household food purchase were at risk of being anaemic [RR = 1.4 (95% CI: 1.9-3.5); p = 0.021] compared to pregnant women who had total control in decision making about the household food purchase. Pregnant women whose husbands were involved in ANC were protective against anaemia [RR= 0.5 (95% CI: 0.3-0.9); p=0.030] compared to pregnant women whose husbands were not involved in ANC. Pregnant women who initiated ANC in the third trimester had a higher risk of anaemia [RR= 2.7 (95% CI: 1.9-4.3); p=0.041] compared to those who initiated ANC in the first trimester. The study found that there was no association between anaemia status of pregnant women at ≥33 weeks of gestation and the 3.1% low birth weight, 2.2% preterm delivery, and 25.1% stunting at Tatale-Sanguli and Zabzugu districts. Based on the results, the study concludes that the anaemia status of pregnant women at ≥33 weeks of gestation did not influence preterm delivery, low birth weight and stunting at the time of the study among the sampled respondents. The study recommends the empowerment of women to increase their decision making autonomy on household food purchase to reduce anaemia.