Short Birth Interval and Associated Factors among Women of Reproductive Age in Arba Minch, in Gamo Zone SNNPR Ethiopia: Evidences from Health and Demographic Surveillance Sites

Abstract

Background Short birth interval (SBI) is a leading threat to maternal and child health in Sub-Saharan countries. To tackle the problem, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends elapses of 33 months between two consecutive live births. However, most women in developing countries do not adhere to these recommendations. Methods Therefore, the aim of this study is to determine the magnitude and associated factors of short birth intervals (SBIs) at the Arba Minch Health and Demographic Surveillance System Site (AM_HDSS). It was based on longitudinally collected data from January 2009 to December 2022. The inter-birth interval (IBI) was dichotomized as "short" when it is less than 33 months and "normal" when it is greater than or equal to 33 months. STATA version 17 was used to enter, clean, and analyze the data. A chi-square test was conducted to test the association between the short birth interval and explanatory variables. A multilevel logistic regression was fitted to determine factors affecting short birth intervals. AOR with a 95% CI was used to identify predictors and a P value less than 0.05 was used to declare the level of significance. Result From the 10,128 cohorts of reproductive-age women in this study, 4,340 (43%) experienced a short birth interval. Educational status (no formal education AOR 1.51 (95% CI: 1.09, 2.10), primary education AOR 1.48 (95% CI: 1.06, 2.07), occupation (sales and services) AOR 1.77 (95% CI: 1.34, 2.33), and home delivery AOR 1.83 (95% CI: 1.42, 2.45) and delivery attended by other than health professional and not assisted AOR 0.74 (95% CI: 0.55, 0.98), and parity three and above AOR 3.04 (95% CI: 2.60, 3.56), were significantly associated with short birth intervals. Conclusion The prevalence of short birth intervals in this study was 43%, meaning that 4 out of 10 women experience short birth related maternal health complication. Maternal education, occupation, parity, place of birth, and the person who attended delivery were factors significantly associated with a short birth interval in this study.