Maternal and Fetal Outcomes Among Anemic  and Non-Anemic Pregnant Women: A Hospital Based Comparative Cross-Sectional Study

Gurpreet  Kaur; Sharish Khan

Gurpreet Kaur Assistant Professor, Army College of Nursing, Jalandhar Cantt, Punjab, India
Sharish Khan Tutor, Department of Nursing, Syed Mantaqi Memorial College of Nursing & Medical Technology, Islamic University of Science and Technology, IUST, Awantipora, Kashmir, India

Abstract

Background: Maternal anemia remains a major public health problem in developing countries and is associated with adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes. Evidence from hospital-based studies in North India comparing maternal and fetal outcomes among anemic and non-anemic pregnant women remains limited.
Objective: To compare maternal and fetal outcomes among anemic and non-anemic pregnant women admitted to a government healthcare facility in North India.
Methods: A hospital-based comparative cross-sectional study was conducted among 60 pregnant women, comprising 30 anemic and 30 non-anemic mothers, admitted to the obstetrics department of atertiary care hospital in North India. Maternal and neonatal outcome data were collected using a structured data collection tool. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Chi-square test, and Student’s t-test. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: Anemic mothers had a significantly higher mean pulse rate than non-anemic mothers (88.0 ± 8.22 vs. 81.2 ± 5.90 beats/min; p < 0.001), whereas respiratory rate and blood pressure were comparable
between the groups. Preterm delivery was more frequent among anemic mothers than non-anemic mothers (53.3% vs. 20.0%). Infants born to anemic mothers more commonly had low birth weight (<2.5kg; 80.0% vs. 13.3%) and birth asphyxia (43.3% vs. 6.7%) than those born to non-anemic mothers.
Conclusion: Adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes, including preterm delivery, low birth weight, and birth asphyxia, were observed more frequently among anemic mothers than among non-anemic mothers.
These findings highlight the importance of routine antenatal screening, early diagnosis, iron–folic acid supplementation, and appropriate management of maternal anemia to improve pregnancy outcomes.
Keywords: Maternal anemia, Pregnancy, Fetal outcomes, Low birth weight, Birth asphyxia, Preterm birth

How to cite this article: How to cite this article: Kaur G, Khan S. Maternal and Fetal Outcomes
Among Anemic and Non-Anemic Pregnant Women: A Hospital-Based Comparative Cross Sectional Study. Chettinad Health City Med J. 2026;15(2):10-18.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/2278.2044.2026010

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