Profile of red blood cell morphologies and causes of anaemia among pregnant women at first clinic visit in the mount Cameroon area: a prospective cross sectional study

Anaemia is a serious problem in pregnancy in malaria-endemic countries. This study investigated red cell morphologies and possible causes of anaemia among pregnant women at first clinic visit. Venous blood samples from consented women were used to determine haemoglobin (Hb) levels, mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH) using an automated haematology analyzer. Malaria parasitaemia was diagnosed by microscopy. Definitions were as follows: anaemia (Hb