The relationship between maternal nutritional status and spontaneous abortion.

BACKGROUND

The incidence of pregnancy wastage is high among poor women. Though the aetiology of spontaneous abortion is multifactorial, nutritional deficiency is considered to be an important contributory factor.

METHODS

A case-control study was conducted to assess the relationship between maternal vitamin status and spontaneous abortion.

RESULTS

The incidence of anaemia (15%), and riboflavin (84%) and folate deficiency (24.5%) were similar among the cases and controls. Vitamin A levels were higher in the study group compared to those in controls.

CONCLUSION

The results suggest that various nutrient deficiencies have no correlation with the occurrence of spontaneous abortion. The role of increased vitamin A levels needs to be studied further.