The Demographical Prevalence of Malaria in Pregnant Women in Oshimili South Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria

This study evaluated the prevalence of malaria in pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in Delta state. Thick-film microscopy was used to detect parasitaemia while polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was employed to confirm positivity. Statistical method used were Chi square, Paired Sample T test and Pearson Correlation test at 5% level using SPSS version 23.0. Out of three hundred and fifty (350) HIV-negative and asymptomatic pregnant women examined at first antenatal registration, one hundred and twenty-two (122) were found positive for malaria parasite. The percentage prevalence of malaria positive cases recorded using microscopy was 34.86% (122/350) while PCR confirmed the positivity of 84% (21/25) for both positive and negative samples derived from microscopy. Prevalence of malaria in relation to age, gravidity, and educational qualification were statistically significant while prevalence in relation to occupation, the hospital they attended were not statistically significant. Participants within the age group of 15-19(66.6%), primigravidae (42.6%), primary education (100%) and traders/businessmen had the highest prevalence of malaria. It is therefore recommended that malaria test should be one of the routine tests compulsorily done on pregnant women to avoid complications and public awareness campaign programs on preventive measures against malaria should be regularly conducted to make the journey to eradication of malaria from Nigeria an easier one.