48PREVALENCE OF IRON DEFICIENCY ANAEMIA IN PREGNANCY ESPECIALLY IN A RURAL COMMUNITY OF PALAKKADAnaemia in pregnancy is an important contributor to maternal mortality/morbidity as well as to the low birth weight which in turn might contribute to increased percentage for infant mortality. Many epidemiological studies in the past have reported the problem in high magnitude. The study was conducted in the Obstetrics and Gynaecology department of two different hospitals- Karuna Medical College Hospital, Chittur, Palakkad and Paalana Institute of Medical Sciences, Palakkad from May 2013 to September 2013. Pregnant women from the three trimesters of pregnancy were included. Anaemia was classified as per the WHO severity grading criteria. Thus anaemia in pregnancy ranges from mild (9-11 g/dl), moderate (7-9 g/dl), severe (4-7 g/dl) and very severe (< 4 g/dl). The typing of anaemia was done as per standard peripheral blood smear examination method. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Institutional Ethical Committee. The prevalence of anaemia was 54.28% in the first trimester, 59.43% in the second trimester and 44% in the third trimester. Overall, 51.68% pregnant women experienced anaemia in pregnancy. In the present study, the prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia in 385 pregnancies between first to third trimesters of pregnancy was determined. As normocytic hypochromic and microcytic hypochromic blood pictures were predominant, it indicates deficient iron intake/ absorption irrespective of age or number of children as the prevalence was high in all groups.aryamohan23@gmail.comResearch422014Pregnancy,Anaemia,Iron DeficiencyArya Mohan,R. Sivakumar,C. I. Sajeeth,Mable John Paalana Institute of Medical Sciences, Palakkad, Kerala,, Paalana Institute of Medical Sciences, Palakkad, Kerala,, Paalana Institute of Medical Sciences, Palakkad, Kerala,,Paalana Institute of Medical Sciences, Palakkad, Kerala, India