Table 1 Differentials in preterm births by Socio-demographic, maternal and fetal characteristics of the mothers (N = 590)
Variable | Frequency | % | No. of preterm birth | % | \({\varvec{\chi }}^{2}\) (p-value) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Preterm birth status | Term birth (\(\ge\)37 weeks ) | 379 | 64.2 | |||
Preterm birth (< 37weeks) | 211 | 35.8 | ||||
Socio-demographic characteristics | ||||||
Age group | < 18 | 17 | 2.9 | 8 | 47.1 | 2.62 (0.269) |
18–30 | 479 | 82.2 | 164 | 34.2 | ||
31 and above | 87 | 14.9 | 36 | 41.4 | ||
BMI | Underweight | 6 | 6 | 3 | 50 | 4.84 (0.184) |
Normal | 248 | 248 | 81 | 32.7 | ||
Overweight | 254 | 254 | 99 | 39 | ||
Obese | 19 | 19 | 10 | 52.6 | ||
Marital status | Married | 513 | 87.2 | 180 | 35.1 | 0.83 (0.842) |
Single | 14 | 2.4 | 5 | 35.7 | ||
Divorced | 54 | 9.2 | 22 | 40.7 | ||
Widow/Widower | 7 | 1.2 | 2 | 28.6 | ||
Education Level | No Education | 32 | 5.5 | 10 | 31.3 | 4.0 (0.262) |
Primary | 203 | 34.6 | 66 | 32.5 | ||
Secondary | 302 | 51.6 | 120 | 39.7 | ||
Tertiary | 50 | 8.5 | 15 | 30 | ||
Location | Rural | 267 | 47.7 | 86 | 32.2 | 1.75 (0.186) |
Urban | 293 | 52.3 | 110 | 37.5 | ||
Employment1 | Employed | 257 | 43.7 | 105 | 40.9 | 4.9 (0.027*) |
Not employed | 331 | 56.3 | 106 | 32 | ||
Drug use (Smoking/Alcohol) | Not active | 379 | 64.3 | 137 | 36.2 | 0.05 (0.825) |
Active | 210 | 35.7 | 74 | 35.2 | ||
Maternal Characteristics | ||||||
ANC Attendance | < 3 times | 55 | 9.3 | 21 | 38.2 | 0.15 (0.702) |
\(\ge\)3 times | 534 | 90.7 | 190 | 35.6 | ||
Mode of delivery | Normal delivery | 346 | 60.1 | 114 | 33 | 3.76 (0.053) |
Caesarian section | 230 | 39.9 | 94 | 40.9 | ||
Parity | < 4 children | 539 | 92.4 | 185 | 34.3 | 4.37 (0.037*) |
\(\ge\)4 children | 44 | 7.6 | 22 | 50 | ||
History of abortion | Aborted | 60 | 10.2 | 27 | 45 | 2.45 (0.118) |
Never aborted | 529 | 89.8 | 184 | 34.7 | ||
Inter-pregnancy interval (in months) | < 24 months | 66 | 11.2 | 27 | 40.9 | 0.86 (0.355) |
\(\ge\)24 months | 524 | 88.8 | 184 | 35.1 | ||
Low birth weight baby | Yes (< 2500g) | 37 | 6.3 | 26 | 70.3 | 20.46 (< 0.001*) |
No (\(\ge\)2500g) | 553 | 93.7 | 185 | 33.5 | ||
HIV status | Sero-positive | 80 | 13.9 | 32 | 40 | 0.69 (0.407) |
Sero-negative | 497 | 86.1 | 175 | 35.2 | ||
Comorbidity | Present | 41 | 7.1 | 10 | 24.4 | 2.62 (0.105) |
Absent | 538 | 92.9 | 199 | 37 | ||
Anemia/Level of hemoglobin | < 10g/dl | 13 | 2.3 | 4 | 30.8 | 0.17 (0.678) |
\(\ge\)10g/dl | 561 | 97.7 | 204 | 36.4 | ||
Preeclampsia | Yes | 134 | 22.8 | 92 | 68.7 | 81.34 (< 0.001*) |
No | 455 | 77.2 | 119 | 26.2 | ||
Previous preterm | Yes | 63 | 10.8 | 33 | 52.4 | 8.66 (0.003*) |
No | 521 | 89.2 | 175 | 33.6 | ||
Fetal Characteristics | ||||||
Sex of child | Male | 259 | 43.9 | 94 | 36.3 | 6.98 (0.031*) |
Female | 320 | 54.2 | 109 | 34.1 | ||
Both Male and Female2 | 11 | 1.9 | 8 | 72.7 | ||
Pregnancy outcome | Singleton | 570 | 96.6 | 197 | 34.6 | 10.56 (< 0.001*) |
Twins | 20 | 3.4 | 14 | 70 | ||
Congenital abnormalities | Yes | 19 | 3.4 | 8 | 42.1 | 0.35 (0.557) |
No | 546 | 96.6 | 194 | 35.5 | ||