Abstract
Malaria in pregnancy is a major public health problem affecting women fetuses and new borns. Many studies highlight the critical importance of continuing the use of Insecticide Treated Nets (ITN) and Intermittent Preventive Treatment In Pregnancy (IPTp) among pregnant women to reduce the adverse consequences of malaria in pregnancy. This study was conducted in order to determine malaria prevalence in relation to the use ofITN and IPTp among the pregnant women in the study area. Five (5) ml of blood was obtained from each participant by the use of a sterile syringe and placed in a sterile EDTA container for laboratory analysis. The malaria parasite was detected by microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained thick blood films. Information on the use of ITN and IPTP was collected using administered questionnaire. A high prevalence of 78.4% was observed among the studied population. Although 74.4% of those that use ITN were positive for malaria parasite as against the 83.6% of those that reported not using the ITN, the difference was statistically not significant (p<0.05). 70.0% of those reported using IPTp were positive however, higher percentage was observed for those reported not using IPTp (83.7.0%). The difference was statistically significant in this case. This study has shown the influence of malaria prevention method during pregnancy on malaria infection and the need for targeted preventive starategies when designing and implementing policies aimed at improving uptake of these measures during pregnancy in Gombe.
 Keywords: malaria, pregnant women, ITN, Gombe, IPTp
Highlights
Malaria is a life threatening parasitic disease caused by the protozoa of the genus Plasmodium
The Nigeria National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP) has received strong partnership support resulting in massive scale up of interventions including insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs), rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), and artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs)
Between 2007 and 2010, over 50 million ITNs have been made available to the population and 70 million RDTs have been distributed to health facilities across the country (WHO, 2012)
Summary
Malaria is a life threatening parasitic disease caused by the protozoa of the genus Plasmodium. The nets reduce human contact with mosquitoes, leading to a significant reduction in the incidence of malaria, associated morbidity, and mortality; as well as in the adverse effects during pregnancy in areas of intense malaria transmission (Ter-Kuile et al, 2003). Another key intervention for controlling malaria and its effects during pregnancy is the administration of intermittent preventive treatment (IPT). This consists of a full therapeutic course of antimalarial medicine given to pregnant women at routine prenatal visits, regardless of whether they are infected with malaria or not. Since pregnant women form part of the most vulnerable group to malaria and other infection, knowledge of their malaria status will provide an insight into areas where control measures should be prioritized
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