The need for standard definitions in global data comparison: lessons from studying the prevalence of anaemia during pregnancy in Sri Lanka

Daru et al have reported that even in the past decade, the odds of death among pregnant women with severe anaemia were 2.36 compared with other pregnant women.1 Though alarming, even these odds have been pointed out to be an underestimation of the actual magnitude of the problem calling for comprehensive strategies to address anaemia in pregnancy.2 Exerting universal consensus on definitions for anaemia in pregnancy is of utmost importance as such strategies require correct quantification of the disease burden and its distribution. According to the maternal health statistics of the district, the cohort had included 86% of its pregnant population registering for antenatal care from July to September 2019.11 Among 1366 pregnant women with POG between 22 and 32 weeks, only 373 (27.3%) were identified as anaemic using the globally accepted threshold of 105 g/L. The accuracy of global rankings and classifications, and hence their usefulness as data for action at global level, is also at stake when countries have used different cut-offs to estimate anaemia prevalence. [...]national healthcare managers need to be vigilant on global changes and the global data repositories and comparisons need additional steps in data curation in order to provide better estimates.