Maternal Factors and Utilization of the Antenatal Care Services during Pregnancy Associated with Low Birth Weight in Rural Nepal: Analyses of the Antenatal Care and Birth Weight Records of the MATRI-SUMAN Trial

Dilaram Acharya, Jitendra Kumar Singh, Rajendra Kadel, Seok-Ju Yoo, Ji-Hyuk Park and Kwan Lee
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Dilaram Acharya: Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 38066, Korea
Jitendra Kumar Singh: Department of Community Medicine and Public Health, Janaki Medical College, Tribhuvan University, Janakpur 44618, Nepal
Rajendra Kadel: Personal Social Services Research Unit, London School of Economics and Political Science, London, WC2A2AE, UK
Seok-Ju Yoo: Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 38066, Korea
Ji-Hyuk Park: Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 38066, Korea
Kwan Lee: Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 38066, Korea

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 11, 1-14

Abstract: Low birth weight (LBW) remains a major public health problem in developing countries, including Nepal. This study was undertaken to examine the association between LBW and maternal factors and antenatal care service utilization, in rural Nepal, using data obtained for a capacity-building and text-messaging intervention, designed to enhance maternal and child health service utilization among pregnant women, in rural Nepal (“MATRI-SUMAN”). The study used a clustered randomized controlled design and was conducted during 2015–2016. We investigated maternal and antenatal care service utilization determinants of LBW, using a logistic regression model. Of the four hundred and two singleton babies, included in the present study, seventy-eight (19.4%) had an LBW (mean (SD), 2210.64 (212.47)) grams. It was found that Dalit caste/ethnicity, illiteracy, manual labor, a female baby, and having more than four family members were significantly positively associated with LBW. In addition, mothers who did not visit an antenatal care (ANC) unit, visited an ANC < 4 times, did not take iron and folic acid (IFA), de-worming tablets, and mothers that did not consume additional food, during pregnancy, were more likely to have an LBW baby, than their counterparts. The MATRI-SUMAN intervention and availability of a kitchen garden at home, were found to reduce the risk of LBW. Nepalese child survival policies and programs should pay attention to these maternal and antenatal care service utilization factors, while designating preventive strategies to improve child health outcomes.

Keywords: antenatal care services; low birth weight; maternal factors; Nepal (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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