Antenatal care positive responses to pregnant women in preventing and controlling malaria in pregnancy: the sub-Saharan African perspective.

Abstract

The response to antenatal care (ANC) for maternal and offspring outcomes, especially in pregnant women has been thoroughly studied. However, despite the number of interventional studies on the treatment of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine combination (IPTp-SP) uptake, the point in point cases of the positive responses of ANC in improving health conditions of pregnant women are not found in the literature. This review collected ANC responses to the positive health outcomes for pregnant women with malaria, the challenges faced regarding IPTp-SP uptake during ANC visits and the role of ANC in preventing and controlling malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. It elucidated ANC and uptake of optimal intermittent preventive IPTp-SP and further described ANC as a tool for heterogeneity for malaria prevention. ANC is seen as a microscope to malaria in pregnacy, maternal iron deficiency and anemia checkpoints, ANC and malaria treatment strategies, and ANC and the use of insecticide treated nets (ITN). The review further discussed ANC attendance influencing factors, limitations to ANC implications and the prospects in ANC visits on preventing malaria in pregnancy. A declining trend of malaria transmission in Africa has been observed in recent years. However, the burden of malaria in pregnancy remains a health concern. The rate of SP resistance, low uptake of IPTp-SP, low LLINs distribution, late gestational ANC visits and low turnaround for optimal ANC visits for first time mothers' aggrevated the malaria-endemic settings among pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa.