Correlates of pregnancy wastage among women in Uganda

Abstract

The study aimed to establish the prevalence of and explore the factors associated with pregnancy wastage among women in Uganda. Specifically, the study sought to determine the prevalence and pattern of pregnancy wastage among ever pregnant women in Uganda, establish the relationship between socio-economic, demographic and intermediate variables and pregnancy wastage. The study used data from the 2006 Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) which was conducted by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) using a nationally representative probability sample of 9,864 households in which 8,531 women aged 15-49 were interviewed. Of these, 6,496 had ever been pregnant hence were selected for the analysis. Data was analyzed at univariate, bivariate and multivariate levels to establish the factors associated with pregnancy wastage. At multivariate level, two models were run to control for proximate determinants. The analysis showed that pregnancy wastage prevalence rate in Uganda was 27.5 percent. Among those who experienced pregnancy wastage, spontaneous abortions/miscarriages accounted for 54.0 percent while still births 37.1 percent. A woman’s level of education, parity, age, religion, marital status, age at first birth and region in which she lived were found to be statistically related to pregnancy wastage. Woman’s occupation, residence, experience of physical violence during pregnancy and household wealth index did not have a statistical significance with pregnancy wastage, according to the study. Important socio-economic and demographic differences in pregnancy wastage exist, among ever pregnant women in Uganda. Efforts towards improved reproductive health education and services tailored towards rural Ugandan women seem necessary. More research on the underlying causes and correlates of pregnancy wastage is needed.