Health Services Academy, Islamabad, Pakistan.
Department of Community Health Sciences, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.
J Pak Med Assoc. 2021 Nov;71(Suppl 7)(11):S50-S56.
Unintended pregnancy has become a substantially growing reproductive health concern in South Asian region. The objective of this survey was to assess the magnitude of unintended pregnancy along with its correlates among currently pregnant women residing in Karachi.
A community based, multistage, cross-sectional study was carried out among 612 currently pregnant women from squatter settlements of Karachi, inquiring for "unintended pregnancy", outcome of interest. Multivariable logistic analysis was done using SPSS v.19 to determine associated factors.
Of 612 pregnant women interviewed, 168(27.4%) reported their pregnancies as unintended. The multivariable regression identified a high likelihood of unintended pregnancy among females aged ≥ 35 years (adjusted odds ratio =3.0, 95% Confidence Interval =1.2 to 4.9)], having: ideal family structure perceived as ≤ two children (Adj. OR=2.3, CI=1.3 - 4.5), no media exposure (Adj. OR=2.9, CI=1.7 to 5.0), no inter-spousal communication about planning a family (Adj. OR=1.5, CI=1.1 - 2.3), ≥5 children (Adj. OR=7.2, CI: 3.4 to 15.1), more sons than daughters (Adj. OR=4.0, CI=1.7 to 6.7), and positive attitude towards using family planning method (Adj. OR=1.8, CI=1.2 to 2.8). Unintended pregnancy decreased with increased age at marriage (Adj. OR= 0.8, CI=0.8, 0.7 - 0.9) and with use of contraceptive methods ever in life (Adj. OR=0.7, CI=0.5 - 0.9).
We found important predictors which suggest policy measures for enhancing media exposure, promoting effective family planning usage, and incorporating behaviour change models in reproductive health clinics to modify fertility intentions of couples.
意外怀孕已成为南亚地区生殖健康的一个重要问题。本调查的目的是评估目前居住在卡拉奇的孕妇中意外怀孕的程度及其相关因素。
在卡拉奇棚户区进行了一项基于社区的、多阶段、横断面研究，询问了 612 名目前怀孕的女性关于“意外怀孕”这一感兴趣的结果。使用 SPSS v.19 进行多变量逻辑分析，以确定相关因素。
在接受采访的 612 名孕妇中，有 168 人（27.4%）报告她们的怀孕是意外的。多变量回归分析发现，年龄≥35 岁的女性（调整后的优势比=3.0，95%置信区间=1.2 至 4.9）、认为理想家庭结构为≤两个孩子（调整后的优势比=2.3，95%置信区间=1.3 至 4.5）、没有媒体接触（调整后的优势比=2.9，95%置信区间=1.7 至 5.0）、夫妻之间没有关于家庭计划的沟通（调整后的优势比=1.5，95%置信区间=1.1 至 2.3）、≥5 个孩子（调整后的优势比=7.2，95%置信区间=3.4 至 15.1）、儿子多于女儿（调整后的优势比=4.0，95%置信区间=1.7 至 6.7）、对使用计划生育方法持积极态度（调整后的优势比=1.8，95%置信区间=1.2 至 2.8）的孕妇，更有可能报告意外怀孕。随着初婚年龄的增加（调整后的优势比=0.8，95%置信区间=0.8，0.7-0.9）和一生中使用过避孕方法（调整后的优势比=0.7，95%置信区间=0.5-0.9），意外怀孕的可能性降低。
我们发现了一些重要的预测因素，这表明可以采取政策措施，加强媒体宣传，促进计划生育的有效使用，并将行为改变模式纳入生殖健康诊所，以改变夫妇的生育意愿。
