Burden of stillbirths and associated factors in Yirgalem Hospital, Southern Ethiopia: a facility based cross-sectional study

Abstract Abstract Background Stillbirth is an adverse pregnancy outcome of public health importance causing considerable psychosocial burden for parents and their family. Studies on stillbirth are scarce in southern Ethiopia. An assessment of stillbirths and associated factors in health care settings helps in devising strategies for tailored interventions. Therefore, we assessed the burden of stillbirths and associated factors in Yirgalem Hospital, southern Ethiopia Methods: A facility based cross-sectional study was conducted between 1 August 2015 and 30 July 2016. We randomly selected medical records of women from a hospital delivery registry. The data were coded, entered, cleaned, and analysed by SPSS version 20. Bivariate analysis was employed to assess the association between independent and dependent variables. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify independent risk factors for stillbirths and to control for confounding. The ethical clearance for the study was obtained from the Institutional Review Board of College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Hawassa University. Results: Of 374 reviewed records of women, 370 were included for the study. The magnitude of stillbirths was 92 per 1000 births. Majority, 15 (44.1%) of fetal deaths occurred after admission to the hospital. In multivariate logistic regression, stillbirths were higher among low birth-weight babies (<2500grams) (AOR: 10.70, 95% CI 3.18-35.97) than normal birth-weight babies (2500-<4000). Women who experienced a prolonged labour for more than 48 hours were 12 times (AOR: 12.15, 95% CI 1.76-84.12) more likely to have stillbirths than women without a prolonged labour. Women with obstetric complications were 19.8 times more likely to have stillbirths than women without obstetric complications. Similarly, women with at least 2 pregnancies were more likely to have stillbirths than women with less than two pregnancies (AOR: 4.39, 95% CI 1.21-15.85). Conclusion: We found a higher proportion of stillbirths than the National report and studies from other countries. Modifiable risk factors contributed to a higher risk of stillbirths in the study setting. Therefore, early identification and management of complications and reducing delays in getting care at each level of health system could avert preventable stillbirths. Key words: stillbirths, pregnancy outcomes, maternal health, Sothern Ethiopia