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Background Uptake of delivery and postnatal care remains low in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs), where 99% of global maternal deaths take place. However, the potential impact of antenatal depression on use of institutional delivery and postnatal care has seldom been examined. This study aimed to examine whether antenatal depressive symptoms are associated with use of maternal health care services. Methods A population-based prospective study was conducted in Sodo District, Southern Ethiopia. Depressive symptoms were assessed during pregnancy with a locally validated, Amharic version of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). A cut off score of five or more indicated possible depression. A total of 1251 women were interviewed at a median of 8 weeks (4–12 weeks) after delivery. Postnatal outcome variables were: institutional delivery care utilization, type of delivery, i.e. spontaneous or assisted, and postnatal care utilization. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the association between antenatal depressive symptoms and the outcome variables. Results High levels of antenatal depressive symptoms (PHQ score 5 or higher) were found in 28.7% of participating women. Nearly two-thirds, 783 women (62.6%), delivered in healthcare institutions. After adjusting for potential confounders, women with antenatal depressive symptoms had increased odds of reporting institutional birth [adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR) =1.42, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.06, 1.92] and increased odds of reporting having had an assisted delivery (aOR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.10, 2.69) as compared to women without these symptoms. However, the increased odds of institutional delivery among women with antenatal depressive symptoms was associated with unplanned delivery care use mainly due to emergency reasons (aOR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.09, 2.42) rather than planning to deliver in healthcare institutions. Conclusion Improved detection and treatment of antenatal depression has the potential to increase planned institutional delivery and reduce perinatal complications, thus contributing to a reduction in maternal morbidity and mortality.

Objective To describe healthcare resource use in rural Mozambique among postpartum women with HIV, their seroconcordant male partners (MPs), and their infants to estimate costs and inform program planning. Methods We collected self-reported resource use data alongside a clinical trial and used WHO-CHOICE methodology to estimate associated healthcare costs. Results We enrolled 927 postpartum women with HIV, 836 MPs, and 756 infants from birth/delivery to 18 months postpartum. We found that 55%, 38% and 8% of women had 0, 1–2, and ≥ 3 health center visits during the first postpartum month, whereas 44%, 47%, and 8% of infants had 0, 1–2, and ≥ 3 health center visits during the same period. 77%, 18%, and 5% of women and 77%, 20%, and 3% of infants spent 0, 1–2, and ≥ 3 nights in a hospital, respectively. From 15 to 18 months postpartum, 38%, 50%, and 12% of women, 45%, 47%, and 8% of MPs, and 33%, 55%, and 12% of infants had 0, 1–2, and ≥ 3 health center visits; hospitalization was infrequent. Average per-person costs of inpatient and outpatient care in the first month postpartum were $4.34-$5.36 and $2.15–3.40, respectively. Conclusion Overall healthcare resource use was low for this population in rural Mozambique in the 18 months after birth/delivery.

Postpartum care is a critical element for ensuring survival and health of mothers and newborns but is often inadequate in low- and middle-income countries due to barriers to access and resource constraints. Newly delivered mothers and their families often rely on traditional forms of postnatal care rooted in social and cultural customs or may blend modern and traditional forms of care. This ethnographic study sought to explore use of biomedical and traditional forms of postnatal care. Data were collected through unstructured observation and in-depth interviews with 15 mothers. Participants reported embracing traditional understandings of health and illness in the post-partum period centered on heating the body through diet, steaming, and other applications of heat, yet also seeking injections from private health care providers. Thematic analysis explored concepts related to transitioning forms of postnatal care, valuing of care through different lenses, and diverse sources of advice on postnatal care. Mothers also described concurrent use of both traditional medicine and biomedical postnatal care, and the importance of adhering to cultural traditions of postnatal care for future health. Maternal and newborn health are closely associated with postnatal care, so ensuring culturally appropriate and high-quality care must be an important priority for stakeholders including understand health practices that are evolving to include injections.

Background An integrated maternal health intervention in a rural sub district of Bangladesh focused on the training and deployment of a required number of Community Based Skilled Birth Attendants (CSBAs). The aim of the study was to assess the effect of the intervention on use of skilled provider care during pregnancy, delivery and after delivery. Methods The effect compared the skilled providers care in low performing areas with high and medium performing areas through pre–and post–intervention surveys. The post-intervention survey was conducted two years after the completion of the intervention. Village clusters, with populations of approximately 3000, were randomly assigned to the surveys. Mothers who had delivered within the 6 months prior to the surveys, were recruited for the structured interviews. Logistic regression was conducted to compare the effect. Results Majority of mothers in the low performing areas belonged to a poor economic quintile. The level of skilled attendance for 4+ Antenatal Care (ANC) and delivery increased sharply from baseline to endline survey in low performing areas (ANC: 1.6% to 15.3%, p < 0.0001; skilled birth attendant at delivery: 12.6% to 38.3%, p < 0.0001). Less than 1% of the women received Post Natal Care (PNC) from a skilled provider prior to the intervention, and this proportion increased to 20% at the end of the intervention. Adjusted odds showed that the intervention had an effect on the individual performing area on use of skilled provider care during ANC, delivery and PNC. The increase of 4+ ANC from skilled providers and skilled birth attendants during delivery in the low performing areas due to the integrated maternal health intervention was significant relative to the increase in the high performing areas [4+ ANC from skilled providers – OR: 3.8 (1.9–7.6); skilled birth attendants – OR: 2.8 (2.1–3.8)]. Conclusion An integrated maternal health care intervention focused on deployment of a required number of CSBAs increased the opportunity for underprivileged women to benefit from skilled providers care during their pregnancy. This integrated intervention might improve the maternal health in developing countries where home delivery with unskilled attendants is common.

Background. Adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) is crucial to preventing mother-to-child transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and ensuring the long-term effectiveness of ART, yet data are sparse from African routine care programs on maternal adherence to triple ART. Methods. We analyzed data from women who started ART at 13 large health facilities in Malawi between September 2011 and October 2013. We defined adherence as the percentage of days \"covered\" by pharmacy claims. Adherence of ≥90% was deemed adequate. We calculated inverse probability of censoring weights to adjust adherence estimates for informative censoring. We used descriptive statistics, survival analysis, and pooled logistic regression to compare adherence between pregnant and breastfeeding women eligible for ART under Option B+, and nonpregnant and nonbreastfeeding women who started ART with low CD4 cell counts or World Health Organization clinical stage 3/4 disease. Results. Adherence was adequate for 73% of the women during pregnancy, for 66% in the first 3 months post partum, and for about 75% during months 4–21 post partum. About 70% of women who started ART during pregnancy and breastfeeding adhered adequately during the first 2 years of ART, but only about 30% of them had maintained adequate adherence at every visit. Risk factors for inadequate adherence included starting ART with an Option B+ indication, at a younger age, or at a district hospital or health center. Conclusions. One-third of women retained in the Option B+ program adhered inadequately during pregnancy and breastfeeding, especially soon after delivery. Effective interventions to improve adherence among women in this program should be implemented.

Background Opioid use disorder (OUD) is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality for women, especially during the perinatal period. Opioid overdose has become a significant cause of maternal death in the United States, with rates highest in the immediate postpartum year. While pregnancy is a time of high motivation for healthcare engagement, unique challenges exist for pregnant women with OUD seeking both substance use treatment and maternity care, including managing change after birth. How women successfully navigate these barriers, engage in treatment, and abstain from substance use during pregnancy and postpartum is poorly understood. The aim of this study is to explore the experiences of postpartum women with OUD who successfully engaged in both substance use treatment and maternity care during pregnancy, to understand factors contributing to their ability to access care and social support. Methods We conducted semi-structured, in-depth interviews with postpartum women in sustained recovery ( n  = 10) engaged in a substance use treatment program in northern New England. Interviews were analyzed using grounded theory methodology. Results Despite multiple barriers, women identified pregnancy as a change point from which they were able to develop self-efficacy and exercise agency in seeking care. A shift in internal motivation enabled women to disclose need for OUD treatment to maternity care providers, a profoundly significant moment. Concurrently, women developed a new capacity for self-care, demonstrated through managing relationships with providers and family members, and overcoming logistical challenges which had previously seemed overwhelming. This transformation was also expressed in making decisions based on pregnancy risk, engaging with and caring for others, and providing peer support. Women developed resilience through the interaction of inner motivation and their ability to positively utilize or transform external factors. Conclusions Complex interactions occurred between individual-level changes in treatment motivation due to pregnancy, emerging self-efficacy in accessing resources, and engagement with clinicians and peers. This transformative process was identified by women as a key factor in entering recovery during pregnancy and sustaining it postpartum. Clinicians and policymakers should target the provision of services which promote resilience in pregnant women with OUD.

Altogether, 20–30% of women receive intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis (IAP) to prevent sepsis in infants and 2–5% of newborn infants receive antibiotics due to suspected sepsis. Caesarean section has a long-term impact on the intestinal microbiome but the effects of perinatal antibiotics on gut microbiome in vaginally delivered infants are not well known. We compared the impact of IAP, postnatal antibiotics, or their combination on the gut microbiome and emergence of antimicrobial resistance in a controlled study of 149 newborn infants recruited within 24 hours after birth. We collected 659 fecal samples, including 426 daily samples from infants before discharge from the hospital and 111 follow-up samples at six months. Penicillin was mostly used for IAP and the combination of penicillin and aminoglycoside for postnatal treatment. Postnatal antibiotic groups received Lactobacillus reuteri probiotic. Newborn gut colonization differed in both IAP and postnatal antibiotics groups as compared to that in control group. The effect size of IAP was comparable to that caused by postnatal antibiotics. The observed differences were still present at six months and not prevented by lactobacilli consumption. Given the present clinical results, the impact of perinatal antibiotics on the subsequent health of newborn infants should be further evaluated.

Background and objectiveThere is an urgent need for robust data on the trajectories and outcomes of pregnancies in women with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD). In particular when rare outcomes or rare diseases are to be investigated, collaborative approaches are required. However, joint data analyses are often limited by the heterogeneity of the different data sources.To facilitate future research collaboration, a European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) Task Force defined a core data set with a minimum of items to be collected by pregnancy registries in rheumatology covering the period of pregnancy and the 28-day neonatal phase in women with any underlying IRD.MethodsA stepwise process included a two-round Delphi survey and a face-to-face meeting to achieve consensus about relevant items.ResultsA total of 64 multidisciplinary stakeholders from 14 different countries participated in the two rounds of the Delphi process. During the following face-to-face meeting of the EULAR Task Force, consensus was reached on 51 main items covering ‘maternal information’, ‘pregnancy’ and ‘treatment’. Generic instruments for assessment are recommended for every item. Furthermore, for the five most frequent IRDs rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and other connective tissue diseases, disease-specific laboratory markers and disease activity measurements are proposed.ConclusionThis is the first consensus-based core data set for prospective pregnancy registries in rheumatology. Its purpose is to stimulate and facilitate multinational collaborations that aim to increase the knowledge about pregnancy course and safety of treatment in women with IRDs during pregnancy.

Background The expansion of primary health care services in Ethiopia made basic health services available and accessible. The Last Ten Kilometers (L10K) project has strengthened the primary health care system through implementing innovative strategies to engage local communities to improve maternal and newborn health care behavior and practices in Amhara, Oromia, Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples [SNNP], and Tigray regions over a decade. Despite the efforts of the government and its partners to improve the use of maternal health services, the coverage of postnatal care is persistently low in the country. This study examined the individual and community level determinants for the persistently low uptake of postnatal care in the project areas. Methods The study used a cross-sectional population-based survey that measured maternal and newborn health care practices among women who had live births in the last 12 months preceding the survey in Amhara, Oromia, SNNP, and Tigray regions. Multilevel random effects binary logistic regression analysis was used to assess the independent effects of community-and individual-level factors and moderating effects on the uptake of postnatal care. Results This study identified region of residence, obstetric factors, and health service-related factors to be significant determinants for use of postnatal care. Obstetric factors include knowledge of obstetric danger signs (AOR: 1.30; 95% CI: 1.05–1.60), cesarean section mode of delivery (AOR: 1.96; 95% CI: 1.28–3.00), and institutional delivery (AOR: 10.29; 95% CI: 7.57–13.98). While the health service-related factors include attended family conversation during pregnancy (AOR: 1.48; 95% CI: 1.04–2.12), birth notification (AOR: 2.66; 95% CI: 2.15–3.29), home visits by community health workers (AOR: 1.98; 95% CI: 1.58–2.50), and being recognized as a model family (AOR: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.03–1.57). Conclusion This study demonstrated that community-level interactions and promotive health services including antepartum home visits by community health workers, family conversation, birth notification, and model family, are important determinants to seek postnatal care. The findings also highlight the need for expansion of health facilities or design appropriate strategies to reach the disadvantaged communities. Program managers are recommended to strengthen community-based interventions to improve postnatal care utilization.