Task-shifting the provision of pregnancy tests to community health workers (CHWs) in low-resource settings has the potential to reach significantly more underserved women at risk of pregnancy with essential reproductive health services. This study assessed whether an intervention to supply CHWs with home pregnancy tests brought more clients for antenatal care (ANC) counselling. We implemented a randomized controlled trial among CHWs providing reproductive health services to women in Eastern Madagascar. We used ordinary least squares regressions to estimate the effect of the intervention, with district- and month-fixed effects and CHW baseline characteristics as control variables. Our outcomes of interest included whether the intervention increased: (1) the number of women at risk of pregnancy who sought services from CHWs; (2) the number of these women who knew they were pregnant by the end of visit; and (3) the number of these women who received ANC counselling during visit. We found that providing pregnancy tests to CHWs to distribute to their clients for free significantly increased the number of women at risk of pregnancy who sought services from CHWs. At follow-up, treatment-group CHWs provided services to 6.3 clients compared with 4.2 clients among control-group CHWs, which represents a 50% relative increase from the control-group mean. A significantly higher number of these clients knew they were pregnant by the end of the visit, with a mean of 0.95 in treatment compared with 0.10 in control (Coeff. 0.86; 95% CI 0.59-1.13). A significantly higher number of these clients received antenatal counselling at the visit (Coeff. 0.4; 95% CI 0.14-0.64). Introducing free home pregnancy tests as part of community-based health services can improve pregnancy care by attracting more clients at risk of pregnancy to services at the community level, enabling more women to confirm they are pregnant and receive antenatal counselling.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czz080 | DOI Listing |
Food Sci Nutr
January 2025
Affiliated Women's Hospital of Jiangnan University, Jiangnan University Wuxi China.
Fatty acids (FAs) and gut bacteria likely play vital roles in intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP). However, the causal connection between FAs, gut microbiota, and ICP has not yet been confirmed. To investigate the associations of FAs, gut bacteria, and ICP, a Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis with two samples was performed to identify the potential causal relationships between FAs and ICP.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Blood Med
January 2025
Department of Blood Transfusion of Yong-chuan Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 402160, People's Republic of China.
Purpose: To study the platelet adhesion and aggregation behaviour of late pregnancy women under arterial shear rate using microfluidic chip technology and evaluate the risk of thrombosis in late pregnancy.
Methods: We included pregnant women who were registered in the obstetrics department of our hospital between January 2021 and October 2022 and underwent regular prenatal examinations. Blood samples were collected at 32-35 weeks of gestation for routine blood tests and progesterone, oestradiol, and platelet aggregation function.
Objective: To examine the association between mood disorders in pregnancy and postpartum and peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM).
Methods: Retrospective cohort study utilizing the National Inpatient Sample from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality of pregnant and postpartum patients from 2017-2019. Patients were separated into two groups based on ICD-10 coding for presence or absence of mood disorder (depression, bipolar depression, anxiety, or other mood diagnosis).
Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is the leading cause of maternal mortality worldwide, which is often attributed to retained placenta (RP) after delivery. There are no biomarkers currently used to predict a risk of developing RP/PPH prior to labor. The objective of this study was to determine relationships between placental biomarkers measured in the first and second trimesters and proxy measures of postpartum blood loss relative to preeclampsia status in the Nulliparous Pregnancy Outcomes Study: Monitoring Mothers-to-Be (nuMoM2b) dataset.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTob Prev Cessat
January 2025
Department of Midwifery, Faculty of Health and Caring Sciences, University of West Attica, Egaleo, Greece.
Introduction: Tobacco consumption poses severe health risks, particularly for pregnant women, where it exacerbates maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. This issue is especially critical among minority groups such as the Roma, who face unique socio-economic and cultural challenges that contribute to higher smoking rates. This study investigates the smoking behaviors of pregnant Roma women and the general population, highlighting the role of midwives in smoking cessation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!