The incidence and risk factors in Ectopic Pregnancy - A retrospective study

Background:The incidence of ectopic pregnancy increased significantly in the past century.The most recent estimate by CDC is 2% of reported pregnancies.The increase may represent an increase in detection and diagnosis .Ectopic pregnancy (EP), is a major cause of maternal morbidity and mortality in the first trimester.It has also been seen that with the advent of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART), the incidence of ectopic pregnancy has shown a rising trend.Objectives : The objective of the study was to find the incidence of ectopic pregnancy in during a one year period in a tertiary care hospital in Central Kerala and to assess the risk factors.Results :There were total 851 pregnancies during the period of study.24 (2.8%) cases were diagnosed as ectopic pregnancy.Thus, incidence of ectopic pregnancy in our hospital during the study period was 28.2 per 1000.29.16% of women with ectopic pregnancy belonged to 31-35yr age group .Pelvic inflammatory disease is the commonest risk factor, 29.16% (7/24).Previous CS and previous abortion also poses the same percentage of risk to our study group (29.16%) followed by previous ectopic pregnancy 12.5%.Conclusion: The study shows that the incidence of ectopic pregnancy is about 2-3 % of all pregnancies.Pelvic inflammatory disease stands out as the single major risk factor.Health education prevention of sexually transmitted diseases and their management will have a greater impact in reducing the incidence of Ectopic pregnancy.