Prevalence of Obstetric Danger Signs during Pregnancy and Associated Factors among Mothers in Shashemene Rural District, South Ethiopia

Abstract

Introduction. Obstetric danger signs are those signs that a pregnant woman will see or those symptoms that she will feel which indicate that something is going wrong with her or with the pregnancy. Evidence on the prevalence of obstetric danger signs and contributing factors were crucial in designing programs in the global target of reducing maternal morbidity and mortality. Objective. To assess the prevalence of obstetric danger signs during pregnancy and associated factors among mothers in a Shashemene rural district, South Ethiopia. Methods. A community-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among 395 randomly selected women who gave birth in the last six months. A pretested interviewer-administered questionnaire was utilized. Data were cleaned, coded, and entered into Epi data manager version 4.1 and then exported to SPSS version 20. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were employed to assess the association between independent variables with the outcome variable. Statistical significance was declared at p<0.05. Result. One hundred sixty-three (41.3%) of women had a history of obstetric danger signs during pregnancy. The most prevalent obstetric danger signs were vaginal bleeding (15.4%) followed by swelling of the body 12.7% and severe vomiting 5.3%. Women who have less than four times antenatal care visits were 6.7 times more likely to experience obstetric danger signs (AOR 6.7 (95% CI 3.05, 14.85)) compared to those who had antenatal care visit four times and above. Women who have inadequate knowledge of obstetric danger signs were 2.5 times more likely to experience obstetric danger signs during pregnancy (AOR 2.5 (95% CI 1.34, 4.71)), and primigravida women were 6.3 times more likely to have obstetric danger signs during pregnancy (AOR 6.3 (95% CI 2.61, 15.09)) compared to multiparous women. Conclusion. About half of the pregnant mothers have experienced at least one obstetric danger signs. Public health interventions on maternal health should give priority to the prevalent causes of obstetric danger signs, strengthening completion of four antenatal care visits and health education on obstetric danger signs for pregnant mothers at community level especially for primgravid women.

Effect of optimal antenatal care on maternal and perinatal health in Ethiopia

“…Receiving optimal ANC had a substantial role in avoiding delay one, which is a delay in deciding to seek care. The finding corresponded well with studies conducted in Ethiopia (Hawassa, Shashemene, South Gonder, and Jimma) (115)(116)(117)(118) and Mali (119). This could be explained by the better birth preparedness that those who received optimal ANC have, making them more alert and ready for pregnancy-related emergencies (120).…”

Level of optimal antenatal care utilization and its associated factors among pregnant women in Arba Minch town, southern Ethiopia: new WHO-recommended ANC 8+ model

“…Women who did experience a danger sign during their pregnancy were four times more likely to continue attending prenatal care appointments than those who did not. This result is in line with studies conducted at Bahir Dar Zuria ( 21 ) and Shashemane, south Ethiopia ( 41 ), which indicates that mothers were more likely to use the services when they were aware of pregnancy risk factors. Because they were worried about the repercussions, they might not have ever skipped an appointment.…”

Assessment of knowledge of obstetric danger signs and its associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic of rural health training centre of a medical college: A cross-sectional study from Rajasthan

“…The mean knowledge scores were computed (15.5, rounded off to 16) and participants who scored equal to the mean and above the mean score were categorized as having adequate knowledge, and those with less than the mean score were under the inadequate knowledge category. [ 15 ]…”