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Reproductive morbidity refers to diseases of
the reproductive system, that may or may not necessarily be a
consequence of reproduction. Reproductive morbidity has three
sub-categories namely (a) Gynecologic
morbidity, (b) Obstetric (or
maternal) morbidity, and (c) Contraceptive morbidity (Fortney,
1995). Anaemia is a general physical problem. But in case of women
anaemia has a very close linkage to reproductive health. Hence we
first discuss about anaemia in women followed by the three
specific varieties of reproductive morbidity mentioned above.
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Anaemia among women
in AP |
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Anaemia is characterised by low level of hemoglobin
in the blood. Anaemia usually results from nutritional deficiency
of iron, folate, vitamin B12, or some other nutrients. Anaemia may
have derimental effects on the health of women and children, may
become an underlying cause of maternal mortality, and results in
an increased risk of premature delivery and low birth weight
(Sheshadri,1997). Early detection of anaemia can help to prevent
complications related to pregnancy and delivery, as well as child
development problems. Anaemia before mid-pregnancy is associated
with an increased risk of pre-term delivery. Maternal anemia
during the later stages of pregnancy, especially the third
trimester, often reflects the expected expansion of maternal
plasma volume (Scholl and Reilly, 2000).
Estimates of anaemia prevalence among women in Andhra pradesh
is available from the NFHS-2. NFHS-2 might have reported in a
slight under estimation of anaemia prevalence.1
Figure 1 shows prevalence of severe, moderate and mild anaemia
among reproductive age women in AP, based on the NFHS-2 estimates.
We can see that more than half (55%) of the women in reproductive
age group of 15-19 years suffer from some kind of anaemia. About
17% of reproductive women have moderate to severe anaemia. |
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Figure
1: Prevalence of anaemia among women in AP 1998-99 |
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Source: NFHS-2(AP). p- 154,
tbl No: 7.4 |
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Figure 2 shows the prevalence of anaemia among women
in different states. Kerala has the lowest prevalence of anemia
(22.7). Andhra Pradesh is one of the states showing high
prevalence of anemia among women of reproductive age group. |
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Figure 2: Anaemia prevalence among reproductive age
group women in AP and different states, 1998-99. |
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1 The
HemoCue system method used by the NFHS-2 might have slightly lower
estimated prevalence of anaemia. The HemoCue has been found to
give accurate results on venous blood samples, comparable to
estimates from more sophisticated laboratory instruments (Von
Schenk et.al., 1986). A recent small-scale study in India (Prakash
et.al., 1999) however found that the HemoCue provided slightly
higher estimates of haemoglobin than the standard blood cell
counter (BCC) method. Because the first 2-3 drops of blood are
wiped away to be sure that the sample used for analysis consists
of fresh capillary blood, it is actually the third or fourth drop
of blood that is drawn into the cuvette (NFHS-2, 2000). Hemocue
method tends to overestimate the levels of Hb and as a result the
prevalence rates of anaemia would be lower (Mohanaram, et.al.,
2002). |
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Gynecological morbidity
Maternal Morbidity
Contraceptive
morbidity |
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Updated by
Samatha Reddy
Dated: 18/08/2003 |
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