Factors influencing the prevalence of malaria among pregnant women:

Abstract

Background: Malaria refers to a disease condition caused by Plasmodium falciparum which is transmitted by an infected female Anopheles mosquito. Globally, an estimate of 3.2 billion people stand a risk of malaria infection and those who are considered to be at a high risk of malaria transmission are 1.2 billion people. Malaria remains a main national health burden in Uganda just like in other African countries. The Main Objective: To investigate factors influencing the prevalence of malaria among pregnant women in Nakivale Refugee camp in Isingiro–Uganda. Methods: The study was conducted using a descriptive cross sectional study in which the researcher administered questionnaires on a total of 240 respondents. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 16.0 and Microsoft excel and presented the findings in pie charts, bar graphs and frequency tables. Results: Majority of the respondents 100% were Muslims, while 00% were Catholics, Anglicans and others respectively. (11.7%) of the respondents were carrying their first pregnancy while the majority (69.6%) had at least 2- or 3 and (18.7%) of the respondents recorded to have at least four pregnancy. Young women within the age group of 18-35 years are more likely to suffer from malaria. 94 respondents representing (39.1%) showed that they have received malaria treatment whereas 146 respondents representing the majority (60.9%) stated that they have not received malaria treatment since when they were pregnant. (9.2%) of the respondents reported not to have gone to school, the majority (74.1%) reported to have stopped in primary, then (15%) and (1.7%) reported to have stopped at secondary and university respectively. Conclusion: The prevalence of malaria among pregnant women was high and consistent with other prior studies that have indicated that Uganda. The socio-economic factors that were found to be associated with the prevalence of malaria among pregnant women were the age of the mothers, level of education, religion and the average monthly income of the mother and the environmental factors that were found to be associated with the prevalence of malaria among the pregnant women were the regular use of ITNs; destruction of breeding places; regular clearing of bushes surrounding the homes; cost of malaria treatment and the perception of women towards malaria prevention and treatment. Recommendations: The Ministry of Health should make it mandatory for all pregnant women to receive a prophylaxis dosage of malaria every trimester in the course of the pregnancy which should be free-of-charge to make it affordable for all pregnant women. All stakeholders such as the government, Ministry of Health and Non-Government Organizations concerned with the prevention of malaria should invest in the distribution of Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Mosquito Nets (LLITNs) free-of-charge to the pregnant women. Also law enforcement stakeholders such as the police and community leaders should ensure the proper use of these LLITNs.