AbstractIntroduction: Anemia is one of the most commonly encountered medical disorders during pregnancy. The fact that some of the pregnant women do not respond to iron therapies, implies deficiency or abnormalities of other factors involved in the hemoglobin/RBC generation and its function. One of the important factors is Vitamin B12 Aims and Objectives: 1.To find out the prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency in primigravid pregnant women in first and early second trimester. 2. To study the effect of B12 deficiency on pregnancy outcome. Results: The prevalence of anemia is 57% with 29.5% mild, 25.5% moderate and 2.1% severe anemia (Hb%: mild 1011, moderate 710 and severe <7gm%). Serum folate was normal (>/= 3ng/dl) in 93.3% and low(<3ng/dl) in 5.7%. Vitamin B12 was normal in 70% (>200pg/dl) and low(<200pg/dl) in 30% of the study group. Conclusion: Anemia is still a major complication of pregnancy with a very high prevalence of 57%. This study revealed that there is significant B12 deficiency in pregnancy of 30%.B12 deficiency is associated with preeclampsia but not with low birth weight. There was folic acid deficiency with a prevalence of 5.7% Folate deficiency is associated with early abortions and low birth weight. The study suggests that apart from iron and folate, vitamin B12 also is a major factor affecting maternal and perinatal outcome and needs further evaluation.
Keywords: Folic Acid; Haemoglobin; B12 and Fetal Outcome.