Publication:

Prevalence of high risk among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in rural field practice area of Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Belgavi, Karnataka, India

Background In India about 20-30% pregnancies belong to high risk category, which is responsible for 75% of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Early detection and effective management of high risk pregnancy can contribute substantially to reduction in maternal mortality. Objective was to study the prevalence of high risk among antenatal women and also to know the socio demographic factors associated with high risk.

Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out between Jan. to June 2016. A total of 600 pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in PHC Kinaye were interviewed using predesigned, pretested questionnaire.

Results In present study, prevalence of high risk pregnancy was 30.7% and 59.8 were having bad obstetric history, 4% were having pregnancy induced hypertension, 5.5% were elderly gravida, 3.2% were Rh negative and 22.3% were having other risk factors. Factors such as education status of pregnant women, age at pregnancy and parity of pregnant women were found to be significantly associated with the prevalence of high risk.

Conclusions Prevalence of high risk among pregnant women was found to be 30.7%. Detection of high risk in early stages will help in preventing maternal mortality.