Alnabri Akram Abdullah M, Ulhaq Naveed Iqbal N, Kabbos Razan S Abu, Aljohani Shaima Saad M, Alshammari Rahaf Z, Alanazi Mariam S, Alshammari Khalid F
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Hail, Hail, Saudi Arabia.
J Family Med Prim Care. 2025 May;14(5):2041-2047. doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1914_24. Epub 2025 May 31.
In Saudi Arabia's Hail City and surrounding provinces, antenatal care (ANC) awareness is suboptimal and is influenced by demographic factors such as age and education. Despite high maternal mortality rates, ANC practices are seen as inadequate. This research is conducted to assess ANC awareness in Hail City to identify what knowledge gaps persist and inform strategies for enhancing maternal and child healthcare.
We employed a descriptive cross-sectional survey through an online questionnaire and our target population was females aged 18 and older. The questionnaire was developed by the research team to evaluate knowledge and attitudes towards ANC. Knowledge was assessed on a 10-point scale and scores above 5 were deemed adequate while attitudes were rated up to 65 points based on responses to specific ANC practices.
Among the 468 female participants with a mean age of 26.9 years, about 90.8% recognized ANC's role in preventing maternal complications and 91.7% acknowledged its importance for fetal health while findings revealed only 10% correctly identified the recommended number of ANC visits. About 57.7% displayed adequate knowledge with 61.5% of women with previous pregnancies scoring higher than those without (54.5%, = .049). Positive attitudes remain evident obtaining scores averaging 49.9 ± 6.4 out of 65.
ANC awareness in Hail City demonstrates knowledge gaps with regard to recommended ANC visit frequency. Although attitudes toward ANC are positive but further research in rural areas is needed to improve comprehensive ANC understanding and practices in Saudi Arabia.
在沙特阿拉伯的海勒市及其周边省份，产前保健（ANC）意识欠佳，且受到年龄和教育等人口因素的影响。尽管孕产妇死亡率很高，但产前保健措施仍被认为不够完善。开展这项研究是为了评估海勒市的产前保健意识，以确定存在哪些知识差距，并为加强母婴保健提供策略依据。
我们通过在线问卷进行了一项描述性横断面调查，目标人群为18岁及以上的女性。问卷由研究团队制定，用于评估对产前保健的知识和态度。知识评估采用10分制，得分高于5分被视为足够，而态度则根据对特定产前保健措施的回答评定，最高65分。
在468名平均年龄为26.9岁的女性参与者中，约90.8%的人认识到产前保健在预防孕产妇并发症方面的作用，91.7%的人承认其对胎儿健康的重要性，而调查结果显示只有10%的人正确识别出推荐的产前保健就诊次数。约57.7%的人表现出足够的知识，有过怀孕经历的女性中有61.5%的得分高于没有怀孕经历的女性（54.5%，P = 0.049）。积极态度仍然明显，平均得分为49.9 ± 6.4（满分65分）。
海勒市的产前保健意识在推荐的产前保健就诊频率方面存在知识差距。尽管对产前保健的态度是积极的，但仍需要在农村地区开展进一步研究，以提高沙特阿拉伯对产前保健的全面理解和实践水平。
