Malaria Alters Iron Status and Immunohaematological Parameters in a Pregnant Population of Northern Ghana

In northern Ghana, this study examined how malaria alters iron status in 150 pregnant women. Those with malaria showed significantly elevated inflammatory markers (AGP, CRP) and ferritin, which hides true iron stores during infection. Iron deficiency anaemia affected 31.4% of infected women. Crucially, soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) remained reliable for detecting genuine iron deficiency when inflammation distorted other markers. These findings highlight why integrated diagnostic approaches combining iron, inflammatory, and malaria biomarkers are essential for proper anaemia management in malaria-endemic regions.