Knowledge, Attitude and Preferences of Pregnant Women towards Modes of Delivery

OBJECTIVE: To determine the knowledge, attitude and preferences of pregnant women towards vaginal and caesarean delivery STUDY DESIGN: KAP (Knowledge, attitude and preferences) study PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: Antenatal clinic of Obstetrics and Gynecology Department at Isra University Hyderabad Sindh, from August 2007 to February 2008. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Four hundred and forty-six women who have attended the antenatal clinic during the study period were interviewed after taking informed consent. The information regarding sociodemographics, obstetric history, knowledge and attitude statements towards vaginal and caesarean delivery, the source of their knowledge, information regarding willingness to accept caesarean delivery as a primary mode of delivery for current pregnancy and the reasons for chosen preferences were recorded on questionnaire. All data were analyzed by using SPSS v.12. Overall scores for knowledge and attitude statements, mean +/- SD were calculated. RESULTS: The mean +/- SD age was 26.54 +/- 5.08 years. Majority (39.7%) of women interviewed have received no formal education. Overall rating for knowledge about modes of delivery was weak in 392 (87.9%) women, while medium and good was rated by 47 (10.5%) and 7 (1.6%) respectively. Mean attitude score was 21.99 +/- 3.12 for vaginal delivery and 8.78 +/- 4.47 for caesarean delivery. It shows that 304 (68.1%) women regarded vaginal delivery as a natural and accepted mode of delivery. Majority of women reported that they obtained the knowledge regarding modes of delivery from their relatives. Three hundred and fifty-seven (80%) women refused to accept caesarean delivery as primary mode of delivery in current pregnancy, common reason given was fear of operation. Only 89 (20%) accepted it and the main reason for acceptance was doctor's advise. CONCLUSION: Women in our setup have low level of knowledge regarding modes of delivery and positive attitude towards vaginal delivery. There is need for a program to increase women's understanding about different modes of delivery.