Asymptomatic malaria and its effect on parturients who received intermittent preventive treatment, a cross sectional study of the Bekwai District Ghana

Malaria is preventable but has contributed significantly to maternal morbidity and mortality in our environment. Malaria parasitaemia during pregnancy is mostly asymptomatic, untreated but with complications such as low birth weight. This cross-sectional study examined the prevalence of asymptomatic malaria and its effects among parturients who had received intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy. One hundred (100) parturient who had received sulphadoxine pyrimethamine (SP) for intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy (IPTp) were conveniently recruited from the Bekwai Municipal Hospital and Akomaa Memorial SDA Hospital onto the study. Blood sample was collected from each participant for the detection of malaria parasitaemia, and estimation of haemoglobin concentration. A well-structured questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic and clinical data of participants. The prevalence of malaria among pregnant women in this study was 19% when both RDT and microscopy were used. Anaemia was present in 27% of the participants, with 14% giving birth to children with low birth weight. Most of the participants with malaria parasitaemia were primiparous, primigravida and not using insecticide treated nets (ITN). Half (50%) of participants with severe parasitaemia gave birth to children with low birth weight. Birth weight was associated with severity of parasitaemia (P=0.029). Multigravida were more likely to give birth to children with low birth weight. The prevalence of malaria among parturient who had received IPTp is still high, and severe malaria was associated with low birth weight. Pregnant women should be educated on the need to use ITN since they are more prone to malaria infection.