[Role of iron deficiency in anemia in pregnant women in Mali].

The epidemiological characteristics of iron deficiency anemia after radioimmunoassay of serum and erythrocyte ferritin were evaluated in 209 Malian women at the time of delivery in a maternity unit in Bamako, Mali. The incidence of iron deficiency anemia was high (36.8%). This incidence did not reflect socio-economic status, nor even any particular obstetric history, but was significantly higher in younger mothers (aged under 26). The severity of anemia was such that 2.4% of women would require a blood transfusion post-partum. It looks therefore desirable, in Mali, to screen routinely and to ensure the prevention of iron deficiency in adolescent girls and to include, in the prevention of anemia of pregnant women, routine iron supplements from the beginning of pregnancy.