Trend of declining bed net utilization among pregnant women in Ethiopia: new data from the Arba Minch Health and Demographic Surveillance System, 2010–2016

Abstract

Background: Bed net utilization is one of the important methods of malaria prevention. Malaria during pregnancy is one of the fatal diseases which mostly leads to the death of the mother and the fetus. Some of the complications of malaria during pregnancy are: intrauterine growth restrictions, intrauterine fetal death, and stillbirth. The main challenge of malaria treatment is that most of the anti-malarial drugs are not safe to use during pregnancy. The use of bed net is the most effective method of prevention of malaria during pregnancy. There is a paucity of information on bed net utilization among pregnant women in the study setting. Hence, this study aims to assess the trends of bed net utilization among pregnant women in Arba Minch Health and Demography Surveillance Site (HDSS), Southern Ethiopia. Methods: The study was conducted in the Arba Minch HDSS. The observation started in 2010 till 2016, using a repeated cross-sectional study design. The data was collected using interviewer administered questionnaire biannually with a total of 14 rounds of data collection from 2010 to 2016. A total of 2657 pregnant women were included in the study. Descriptive statistics such as frequency and proportion were used to present the findings of each variable. Results: Out of 2657 mothers included in the study, more than half, 1521 (63.6%), of the study participants were in the age group between 20 and 29 years. About one-third of the study population 793 (29.8) were having no schooling. The trend of bed net utilization decreased from 83.6% in 2010 to 36.5% in 2016. Conclusion: The trends of bed net utilization decreased from 2010 to 2016 in Arba Minch HDSS. Utilization of bed net by pregnant women in the area need to be increased as it is malaria endemic. The government should strengthen the existing bed net distribution strategy. Further research is needed to investigate the cause of decreasing bed net utilization.

Causes and trends of adult mortality in southern Ethiopia: an eight-year follow up database study

“…This may be due to a relatively better diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in health facilities currently in Ethiopia. Similarly, the trend of adult mortality from malaria showed a steady decrement in this study, although a declining bed net utilization among pregnant mothers is reported from similar area [36]. The declining trend of death from malaria, does not however, show a low malaria prevalence in the area, as it is still the second most cause of adult deaths.…”

Association between maternal age and adverse perinatal outcomes in Arba Minch zuria, and Gacho Baba district, southern Ethiopia: a prospective cohort study

“…Arba Minch-Health and Demographic Surveillance System sites were established in collaboration between Arba Minch University and Ethiopian Public Health Association with the support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Ethiopia in 2009 to track demographic changes. The surveillance site included nine kebeles from the 29 kebeles located in Arba Minch zuria, and Gacho Baba district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia [28]. Arba Minch is an administrative town in the Gamo zone, located 505 km south of Addis Ababa and 275 km southwest of Hawassa.…”

Trends in ITN Use Prevalence among Children Attending for Malaria Diagnosis in the Main Sentinel Site for Malaria Surveillance of Gabon: Data from 2010 to 2020

“…In Ethiopia, bed net use significantly decreased among pregnant woman from 2010 (83.6%) to 2016 (36.5%) [15]. After, the Abuja Meeting in 2000 and with the Global Fund support, most of the African endemic countries implemented the ITN through free distribution campaigns.…”