Prevalence of meconium stained amniotic fluid and its associated factors among women who gave birth at term in Felege Hiwot comprehensive specialized referral hospital, North West Ethiopia: a facility based cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Meconium stained amniotic fluid is one of the risk factors to increase the rate of perinatal morbidity and mortality both in developed and developing countries. Due to a multitude of factors associated with socioeconomic and quality of service, the ill effect of meconium stained amniotic fluid is even worse in developing countries. But very little information is known about the situation in Ethiopia, particularly the study area to design appropriate prevention strategies. Hence, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of meconium-stained amniotic fluid and its associated factors among women who gave birth at term in Felege Hiwot Referral Hospital, North West Ethiopia.

METHODS: Institutional based cross-sectional study was conducted at Felege Hiwot Referral Hospital from March 02-May 27, 2018. A total of 495 mothers were included in the study. The study participants were selected by systematic random sampling technique. A combination of chart review and interview were used to collect the data. Data entry and analysis were made by using Epi-data version 3.1 and SPSS versions 23 respectively. Both descriptive & analytical statistics were computed. Statistical significance was considered at P < 0.05 and the strength of association was assessed by using adjusted odds ratio.

RESULT: The prevalence of meconium stained amniotic fluid was found to be 17.8%. Women whose age greater than 30 years [AOR =5.63, 95%CI =3.35-9.44], duration of labor greater than 24 h [AOR = 7.1, 95%Cl =1.67-29.68], induced labor [AOR = 2.60, 95% CI =1.39-4.87], preeclampsia [AOR = 3.45, 95%CI =1.26-9.37] and obstructed labor [AOR =5.9, 95%CI =1.29-29.68] were found to be associated with meconium stained amniotic fluid.

CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of meconium stained amniotic fluid was similar as compared to the international standard. Preeclampsia, maternal age, obstructed labor, induced labor and longer duration of labor were factors associated with an increased risk for meconium-stained amniotic fluid. Thus, early detection and timely intervention are mandatory to decrease prolonged and obstructed labor.