Iron Infusion Into a Vein Compared to Iron Tablet Taken by Mouth for Treating Iron Deficiency Anemia in Pregnancy (IVON)

Background: Anaemia in pregnancy is a public health burden with high incidence in Africa. Currently high dose oral iron is recommended for treatment of mild to moderate anaemia and blood transfusion for severe anaemia. The high dose oral iron is often poorly tolerated and associated with several side effects. Various parenteral iron preparations are now available for treatment of iron deficiency anaemia (IDA). The earliest of these, iron dextran is not commonly used because of its potential to cause anaphylactic reactions. Newer preparations have been found to be safer and their use for treatment of IDA is currently being evaluated. Objective: This study sought out to compare the effectiveness of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose (intervention) versus oral ferrous sulphate (control) for treating IDA in pregnancy and to compare the tolerability, safety and the cost-effectiveness of intravenous versus oral iron among pregnant Nigerian women with moderate and severe IDA at 20-32 weeks' gestation. Methodology: This study will be a hybrid Type 1 effectiveness-implementation design. 1056 eligible and consenting pregnant women with anaemia at 20 - 32 weeks gestation will be recruited. They will be randomized into either of 2 groups. Group A will have intravenous ferric carboxymaltose 20mg/kg to a maximum of 1000mg in 200mls of normal saline infusion over 15 - 20 minutes at enrolment. Group B will have oral ferrous sulphate 200mg (65mg elemental iron) thrice daily from enrolment till delivery. They will be followed up through delivery and until 6 weeks post partum. Their haemoglobin concentration, full blood count, serum ferritin and serum transferrin will be assayed at specific intervals using standard laboratory techniques. Depression will be assessed at each visit using Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale. Cost effectiveness analysis will also be done at each visit. The primary outcome measure will be incidence of maternal anaemia and rise in haemoglobin level. Seconda