Prevalence of anemia among the women of childbearing age belonging to the tea garden community of Assam, India: A community-based study

BACKGROUND: Anemia is a condition in which the number of red blood cells becomes insufficient to meet the body's physiologic needs. Anemia is one of the major public health problems in India. The aim of this study was to find the prevalence and determinants of anemia among the adult females of tea garden community of Assam. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 770 numbers of adult females belonging to the tea garden community. For all the samples, complete blood count, abnormal hemoglobin variants screening by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), serum iron level, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), and serum ferritin concentrations were determined. RESULTS: Out of 770 patients, 19.7% were severely anemic. Hb S and β-thalassemia were the only hemoglobin types detected in the study. Hemoglobin type, mean corpuscular volume, TIBC, and serum ferritin level were the important determinants of anemia in the present study. CONCLUSION: To reduce the burden of anemia among the adult females of tea garden community, the females should be screened periodically, and appropriate measures should be taken.