Asymptomatic placental cord blood malaria in pregnant women attending the Bamenda Regional Hospital: A cross sectional study

Abstract

Abstract Malaria in pregnancy has been a major health problem of humans through history and is a leading cause of preterm births, miscarriages, stillbirths and death. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of malaria in placental cord blood and the risk factors associated with it at the Regional Hospital Bamenda, Cameroon. Two hundred and fifty-eight samples were collected from the placental cord using a sterile syringe. Slides were prepared, stained using Giemsa (10%) and observed under the microscope. Risks factors were assessed via questionnaires. Data obtained was analysed using SPSS version 21. Chi square test was used to test for differences in proportions in different categories and regression analysis was also used to get the relationship between prevalence and risk factors in this study. The overall prevalence of placental cord blood malaria was 3.9% (10) and the disease was more prevalent among parturients in the age group 21–30 years 2.71% (7) than those of the age group 41–50 years who recorded zero prevalence. Parturients with secondary and tertiary level of education had the highest prevalence 5(1.94%) and those with less than 3 children recorded the highest prevalence 2.71% (7) compared to those with more than 3 children 1.16% (3). The Plasmodium species identified were Plasmodium falciparum (3.5%) and Plasmodium malariae (0.4%). The risk factors that predisposed the parturients in this study included; not sleeping under mosquito nets, living by streams, those with bushes around the house and those who did not take their anti-malaria drugs effectively. Malaria parasites were prevalent in the placental cord blood which means pregnant women are not free from this infection and it merits extra preventive and treatment measures.