Effect of late antenatal booking on maternal anemia and fetus birth weight on parturients in Enugu, Nigeria: An analytical cross-sectional study.

Background: The benefits of antenatal care are maximized when women book early for care. However, despite these resounding benefits, women still book late, while others do not book at all, resulting in dire feto-maternal consequences. Aim: Determine the effect of late prenatal booking on maternal anemia and birth weight in babies of women who delivered in public health facilities in Enugu and deduce the reasons for booking late. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional study of two groups of women (235 participants in each group) who delivered in 4 randomly selected hospitals in Enugu. Descriptive statistics were obtained for continuous variables, and frequency and percentages were used for categorical variables. Degree of associations was determined using the Chi-square, the student's t-test, and 2 x 2 table. Results: The prevalence of anemia among women that booked late and early were (69.7%; n = 147) and (50.7%; n = 107) respectively. Women who booked late were two times more likely to have anemia than those who booked early (OR = odds ratio, p = p-value, CI = confidence interval,). Those who booked late were six times more likely to deliver low birth weight babies than those who booked early (OR = 5.934, 95% CI = 1.299-27.119, P = 0.022). Conclusions: Late prenatal booking is associated with a high prevalence of maternal anemia in labor, low mean maternal hemoglobin, and low birth weight compared to those of women who booked early and the reasons for booking late are multifactorial.

Evaluation of anxiety and depression among pregnant women in Enugu, Nigeria.

Background: Maternal depression and anxiety during pregnancy are public health concerns. They are commonly reported among pregnant women from all over the world. Maternal mental health has not been prioritized, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Aim: To evaluate depression and anxiety among pregnant women who receive antenatal care in four randomly selected hospitals in Enugu, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: A multicenter questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey of 434 pregnant women was conducted at four selected health institutions offering antenatal services in Enugu, Enugu State. The prevalence of anxiety and depression was assessed using the hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS). Factors associated with anxiety and depression were determined using logistic regression. P <0.05 was taken as significant. Results: The mean age of study participants was 30.09 ± 5.12 years. The proportion of participants with depressive symptoms and borderline depressive symptoms was 9.7% and 11.1%, respectively. The proportion of participants with anxiety symptoms and borderline anxiety symptoms was 10.1% and 15.7%, respectively. Husband's employment status (P = 0.033, odds ratios (OR) =0.354, 95% confidence intervals (CI) =0.137-0.918) and gestational age (P = 0.042, OR = 2.066, 95% CI = 1.028-4.151) were the only factors associated with depressive symptoms, while only educational level (P = 0.001, OR = 3.552, 95% CI = 1.674-7.537) and husband's employment status (P = 0.013, OR = 0.295, 95% CI = 0.113-0.772) were the only factors associated with anxiety symptoms. Conclusions: Anxiety and depressive symptoms are relatively common in antenatal women in Enugu. The factors associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms were the respondent's educational level, gestational age, and the employment status of the husband.

Prevalence and predictors of placental malaria in human immunodeficiency virus-positive women in Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected pregnant women have alterations in cellular and humoral immunity that increase the risks to placental malaria infection. AIM: This study aimed at determining the prevalence and predictors of placental malaria among HIV-positive women in Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was a longitudinal cohort study of pregnant women receiving antenatal care at a tertiary hospital in Nigeria. Peripheral blood sample for packed cell volume estimation and placental blood sample for malaria parasite estimation were collected from each participant at a presentation in labor and upon delivery, respectively. RESULTS: The Prevalence of placenta malaria (68.6%) and anemia (66.7%) in HIV-positive women were significantly higher than the prevalence of placental malaria (35.3%) and anemia (44.1%) in HIV-negative control (P < 0.001 and P = 0.001 respectively). The employment status was the only sociodemographic factor significantly associated with the development of placental malaria in HIV-positive women (odds ratio: 21.60; 95% confidence interval: 7.1-66.2; P< 0.001). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of placental malaria is very high among HIV-positive women in Nigeria. Scaling up free distribution of insecticide treated nets in the short term and employment opportunities of HIV-positive women, in the long run, may reduce the prevalence of placental malaria in our population.