Iron deficiency anaemia in pregnancy: a narrative review from a clinical perspective

Anaemia in pregnancy is a global problem of significance in all settings. The most common cause is iron deficiency. Large numbers of women are affected, ranging up to 25–30% antenatally and 20–40% postnatally. It is associated with serious adverse outcomes for both the mother and her baby. The risk of low birth weight, preterm birth, postpartum haemorrhage, stillbirth, and neonatal death are all increased in the presence of anaemia. For the infants of affected pregnancies, complications may include neurocognitive impairment. Making an accurate diagnosis during pregnancy has its challenges, which include the choice of thresholds of haemoglobin below which a diagnosis of anaemia in each trimester of pregnancy can be made and, aligned with this question, which are the most appropriate biomarkers to use to define iron deficiency. Treatment with oral iron supplements increases the haemoglobin concentration and corrects iron deficiency. But high numbers of women fail to respond, probably due to poor adherence to medication, resulting from side effects. This has resulted in an increased use of more expensive intravenous iron. Doubts remain about the optimal regimen to of oral iron for use (daily, alternate days, or some other frequency) and the cost-effectiveness of intravenous iron. There is interest in strategies for prevention but these have yet to be proven clinically safe and effective.

Citation

Obianeli C, Afifi K, Stanworth S, Churchill D. Iron Deficiency Anaemia in Pregnancy: A Narrative Review from a Clinical Perspective. Diagnostics. 2024; 14(20):2306. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics14202306

PubMed ID

39451629 (pubmed)

Additional Links

https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics14202306

Type

Journal article

Language

en

Description

© 2025 The Authors, published by MDPI. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics14202306

ISSN

2075-4418

EISSN

2075-4418

Collections

Faculty of Science and Engineering