Conference abstract

PREVALENCE AND DETERMINANTS OF POSTPARTUM MORBIDITIES AMONG WOMEN IN MBALE DISTRICT, EASTERN UGANDA

Pan African Medical Journal - Conference Proceedings. 2017:3(40).17 Oct 2017.
doi: 10.11604/pamj-cp.2017.3.40.146
Archived on: 17 Oct 2017
Contact the corresponding author
Keywords: Maternal-ill-health, delivery, postpartum maternal morbidity
Oral presentation

Prevalence and determinants of postpartum morbidities among women in Mbale district, Eastern Uganda

Jacinta Dusabe1,&, Christine Begumisa1, Catherine Birabwa1, Michael Ediau1, Doreen Tuhebwe1, John Waniaye1, Richard Kajura1, Justine Bukenya1

1Makerere University, School of Public, Kampala, Uganda

&Corresponding author
Jacinta Dusabe, Makerere University, School of Public, Kampala, Uganda

Abstract

Introduction: maternal-ill-health is common after delivery, and yet there is scanty information on postpartum morbidity. This problem is more prevalent in developing countries but, its importance has not been extensively recognized. Maternal morbidity increases the risk of death among affected women and also have the potential to cause long-term disabilities with consequences of poor quality of life of the mother and child. This study determined the magnitude and determinants of postpartum maternal morbidity among women in Mbale district.

Methods: this was a cross-sectional study carried out between July and September 2015, data was collected from June to July among 474 randomly selected postpartum women of reproductive age who had delivered within 3 to 42 days before the survey. Structured questionnaires were used for data collection. The primary outcome of interest was presence of any of the four pre-selected postpartum morbidities (Postpartum hemorrhage, painful perineum, puerperal sepsis and fistula). For univariable analysis, frequencies and proportions were generated to describe key variables. Bivariable analysis was performed to identify factors associated with the outcome. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to adjust for potential confounding. Odds ratios and their corresponding 95% confidence interval were used to measure the strength of the associations.

Results: about half (46.5%) of study participants had attained secondary education, majority (88.2%) were married and 66.4% were house wives. The prevalence of postpartum morbidity was 52.5%. The most common morbidity was hemorrhage (27.1%) and the least common was fistula (7.3%). The factors significantly associated with postpartum maternal morbidity delivering from home (AOR = 2.7, CI 1.4-5.9), parity of 3 or more children (AOR = 2.3, CI 1.3-4.0) and postnatal care attendance of 3 or more times (OR = 1.7, CI-1.0-2.81).

Conclusion: there is a high prevalence of postpartum morbidity in the district. The district health authorities should plan and prioritize postpartum maternal health and design interventions to prevent postpartum morbidity among women in the district.