Abstract:
Iodine deficiency has been a major nutritiona problem globlly and It is the single
greatest preventable cause of brain damage and mental retardation. It is also a significant public
health concern in Ethiopia particularly during pregnancy. The availability data on the local
prevalence is immensely important but there is scarity of data on the prevalence and associated
factors among pregnant women in the study area.
Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of iodine deficiency and
associated factors among pregnant women in Haramaya Demographic Health Surveillance Site,
Eastern Ethiopia.
Methods: A community based, quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted from March 13
to 30 April, 2021 in Haramaya DHSS. A total of 400 pregnant women were enrolled in the study
using systematic random sampling method. Pretested questionnaire were used to collect the data.
Urine iodine concentration was determined by spectrophotometer using Sandell-Kolthoff’s
reaction method. Bi-Variable and multivariable Logistic regressions were used to identify factors
associated with ID. Crude Odds Ratio (COR) and Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) with 95%
confidence interval (CI) were used to assess the strength of association. A P-value of <0.05 was
significant association.
Results: The median UIC of the pregnant women was 231.31µg/L with interquartile range (IQR)
of [130.33-365.76] µg/L respectively. The prevalence of iodine deficiency UIC (<150µg/L).
among pregnant women was 30.3% [95% C I (25.5-35.1%)]. In multivariate analysis, factors
such as maternal age (25-35) years (AOR=0.6,95%CI:0.34-0.90), (Being illiterate) (AOR=2.5,
95%CI: 1.04 -6.34), Antenatal care (ANC) follow up (AOR=2.1,95% CI: 1.2-3.7) ; not
consuming fish at all (AOR=3.6, 95%CI:1.53-8.06), (MUAC≤23) (AOR=0.6, 95%CI: 0.35-
0.94) were showed a significant association with iodine deficiency (p<0.05).
Conclusion: The present study noted adequate iodine status among pregnant women in the
study site. Prevalence of iodine deficiency (UIC<150µg/L) was recorded in 30.3 % of the study
participants. Further need to be done using repeated spot urine-sapmples ,at different seasons
and with other study design.
