Page 126 - MI-2-2

Microbes & Immunity

MINI – REVIEW
Prevalence of anemia among coronavirus

disease 2019 patients in Ethiopia: A meta-
analysis

Abateneh Melkamu 1 , Yalew Muche 1 , Abebe Yenesew 1 ,
Melaku Laikemariam 2 , Befikad Mandefro 3 , Zewudu Mulatie 4 ,
Zigale Hibstu Teffera 1 , Adane Adugna 1 , Gashaw Azanaw Amare 1 ,
1
and Aytenew Atnaf *
1 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Debre
Markos University, Debre Markos, Amhara, Ethiopia
2 Department of Midwifery, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Debre Markos University,
Debre Markos, Amhara, Ethiopia
3 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch
University, Arba Minch, South Nation and Nationalities, Ethiopia
4 Department of Medical Laboratory Science, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Wollo
University, Dessie, Amhara, Ethiopia

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by the severe acute respiratory
syndrome coronavirus 2, impacting various systems in the human body, including
*Corresponding author:
Aytenew Atnaf the hematological and reticuloendothelial systems, which can alter blood
(aytenew_atnaf@dmu.edu.et) production. Consequently, severe anemia-associated complications could occur in
Citation: Melkamu A, Muche Y, COVID-19 patients. At present, there is a lack of pooled prevalence data on anemia
Yenesew A, et al. Prevalence of among COVID-19 patients in Ethiopia. This systematic review and meta-analysis
anemia among coronavirus disease aimed to determine the overall prevalence of anemia in this population. Following
2019 patients in Ethiopia: A meta-
analysis. Microbes & Immunity. PRISMA guidelines, we conducted a literature search across PubMed/MEDLINE,
2025;2(2):118-125. Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, HINARI, and the Ethiopian Journal of Health
doi: 10.36922/mi.3504 Development for articles published before 2024. Additional manual searches were
Received: April 25, 2024 performed to identify relevant studies. Study selection, data extraction, and quality
2
Revised: June 25, 2024 assessment were conducted independently by the authors. The I test statistics
were used to assess heterogeneity among studies, and the overall prevalence was
Accepted: July 4, 2024 calculated using a random-effect restricted maximum likelihood model. Out of
Published online: October 28, 860 studies obtained, 11 articles were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled
2024 prevalence of anemia among COVID-19 patients in Ethiopia was found to be 22.81%
Copyright: © 2024 Author(s). (95% CI [confidence interval]: 14.76 – 30.85%). Specifically, the prevalence of anemia
This is an Open-Access article in Addis Ababa and Amhara was 27.13% (95% CI: 14.59 – 39.66%) and 22.50%
distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution (95% CI: 11.04 – 33.96%), respectively. This study indicates that anemia is a moderate
License, permitting distribution, public health problem among COVID-19 patients in Ethiopia. Consequently, it is
and reproduction in any medium, imperative to implement preventative interventions and management strategies for
provided the original work is
properly cited. anemia in this population.
Publisher’s Note: AccScience
Publishing remains neutral with Keywords: Prevalence; Anemia; Coronavirus disease 2019; Severe acute respiratory
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional syndrome coronavirus 2; Ethiopia
affiliations.

Volume 2 Issue 2 (2025) 118 doi: 10.36922/mi.3504