Abstract
Rubella virus infection (RVI) is, in most cases, a mild disease, but can cause severe defects in developing fetus and new born known as congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) from maternal infection during pregnancy. Rubella remains poorly controlled in many poor-resourced areas (Nigeria inclusive) despite being a vaccine preventable disease. The study aimed to assess the sero-prevalence of anti-rubella IgG antibody (immunity) and level of susceptibility and associated risk factors to rubella virus infection (RVI) among unimmunized pregnant women in a sub-urban setting. It was a hospital-based, cross-sectional descriptive study, conducted in a public general hospital in Rogo, a sub-urban community located in Kano State, Northwest, Nigeria. A total of 174 consented pregnant women [age range, 13-39 years; mean age, 22.3 ± (SD 2.1) years] attending antenatal care (ANC) clinic of a secondary healthcare centre from July to December, 2017 were randomly selected for the study. Information on bio-data, socio-demographic/risk factors and medical history related to previous RVI were obtained via structured questionnaires and hospital records respectively. Blood sample was collected from each study participant and tested for anti-rubella IgG antibody (past exposure) using ELISA technique. Data were analyzed using SPSS statistical software package version 15.0 and Pearson’s Chi-square or Fisher exact test was used for statistical analysis where applicable. A P-value ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The sero-prevalence of anti-rubella IgG antibody was 93.6% (163 of 174); and rate of susceptibility to RVI among the study population was 6.4% (11 of 174) and were predominant among the study subjects between ages 16 and 25 years in their first trimester of pregnancy. A significant association exists (P<0.05) between parity (P=0.0021) and history of miscarriage or premature birth (P=0.003) and anti-rubella IgG antibody. Similarly, there is an association between sero-negative IgG antibody and parity (P=0.0021) including occupation (subjects in this category were mainly housewives) (P=0.00541) of the study participants. The high rate of rubella exposure by the study participants indicates the presence and high endemicity of rubella infection in the study area, coupled with significant level of susceptibility to RVI by the study subjects. Hence, there is need for adoption of potent rubella vaccine into the routine national immunization programme to limit the spread of RVI and associated complications and clinical sequelae among the populace.
Published Version
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