Prevalence of Alcohol use during pregnancy and its association with partner alcohol use in East Africa: systematic review and meta-analysis

Introductionmaternal alcohol beverages consumption (any amount) during pregnancy can result in multiple major health and social problems both for the mother and fetus; including miscarriage, stillbirth, low birth weight, and prematurity. At the regional and national level, alcohol use prevalence data is a use full indicator for maternal and child health.\n\nMethodsthe researchers were searched for studies using a computerized search engine, main electronic databases, and other applicable sources. Observational studies (case-control, crosssectional and cohort) which assess the prevalence of alcohol use and associated factors among pregnant mothers in East Africa were eligible. Data was extracted thoroughly by two authors independently and screened for eligibility. The Pooled prevalence of alcohol use during pregnancy and its association with partner alcohol use was determined by using Epi data version 14 statistical software.\n\nResultsthe study included eighteen studies with the total sample size of 41,022 and The overall pooled prevalence of alcohol use during pregnancy from the random effects method was found to be 18.85% (95% CI; 11.26, 26.44). The overall weighted odds ration revealed that pregnant women partners alcohol use did not have a significant association with study subjects alcohol use during pregnancy; i.e. OR=0.32 (95% CI: -0.39, 1.03).\n\nConclusionsThe overall alcohol use (any amount) during pregnancy is higher in magnitude and pregnant mothers who had alcohol user partner had no association with their use of alcohol beverages. The prevalence of alcohol use during pregnancy may be underestimated in the current study due to social desirability bias. Since related study articles were found only in four East African countries, the region may be under-represented due to the limited number of studies included.