Association between iron-folic acid supplementation and pregnancy-induced hypertension among pregnant women in public hospitals, Wolaita Sodo, Ethiopia 2021: a case- control study

BACKGROUND: Pregnancy-induced hypertension is the new onset of high blood pressure after 20 weeks of gestation in women with previously normal blood pressure. To the best of our knowledge, no study has been conducted in our country to investigate the association between this pregnancy problem and iron-folic acid supplementation. The aim of this study was to determine the association between iron-folic acid supplementation and pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) in pregnant women at public hospitals in the Wolaita Sodo zone. METHODS: An institution-based case–control study was conducted among pregnant women who visited public hospitals in the Wolaita Sodo zone from March 3, 2022, to August 30, 2022. A consecutive sampling method was used to select the study participants. The total sample size was 492, of which 164 were cases and 328 were controls. The data were collected by conducting face-to-face interviews and measurements. The data were entered into EpiData version 4.6 and exported to STATA 14 for analysis. Those variables with a p-value less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Descriptive statistics and odds ratios were presented using texts, tables, and figures. RESULTS: A total of 471 women participated in this study, yielding a response rate of 96%. The cases had a mean age of 25 ± 4.43, while the controls had a mean age of 25 ± 3.99. The mean age at first pregnancy among cases was 20 ± 2.82 and among controls was 20 ± 2.97. The average number of deliveries for cases and controls was 1.97 ± 1.41 and 1.95 ± 1.38, respectively. There is no significant association between iron-folic acid supplementation and PIH. Pregnant women with high hemoglobin levels had higher odds of PIH as compared to those without it (AOR = 3.65; 95% CI: 1.0–12.9). Eating kocho (AOR = 14.4; 95% CI: 1.2–16.7) was positively associated with PIH. CONCLUSIONS: There is no association between iron-folic acid supplementation during pregnancy and pregnancy-induced hypertension. Pregnant women with high hemoglobin levels had higher odds of PIH as compared to those without it. There is an association between kocho consumption and PIH. More research should be done using stronger designs.