Background: Maternal anemia is a significant risk factor for premature labor, low neonatal birth weight and low hemoglobin levels in the newborn.
Objectives: We aimed to assess the impact of maternal anemia on their newborn hemoglobin levels just after the delivery.
Methods: The study included 200 mothers and their newborns. We took a detailed history from the mothers which included age, maternal education level, residence, parity and nutritional status. We measured newborn birth weights and assessed their gestational ages. In addition, we measured hemoglobin level for the mothers just before delivery and their newborns.
Results: Maternal anemia was present in 59% of the studied mothers, being predominant in non-educated mothers with poor nutritional status and in those living in rural areas without regular antenatal care. There was a significant positive correlation between maternal hemoglobin at delivery and hemoglobin in their newborn (r=0.546, p=0.000). The mean birth weight of anemic newborns (2.7 ± 0.6kg) was significantly lower than that of their non-anemic counterparts (3.2 ± 0.6kg) (p=0.000). Mean birth weight of newborns whose mothers were anemic was 2.7 kg ± 0.6 compared to 3.4 kg ± 0.6 in newborns whose mothers were not anemic (p=0.000). Newborn complications were associated with a cut off level of maternal hemoglobin ≤ 10.7g/dL with a sensitivity of 83% and a specificity of76.6%. 
Conclusion: Maternal anemia is a common problem and was present in more than half of the studied mothers. Maternal anemia at delivery increased the chances for low birth weight and neonatal anemia.