Prevalence of Nausea and Vomiting of Pregnancy and its Associated Factors at Three Teaching Hospitals in Ethiopia

Background: Nausea and vomiting are common symptoms during early pregnancy affecting as many as 50-80% of pregnant women. Persistent low food intake and/or frequent vomiting can lead to dehydration, metabolic imbalance, nutritional deficiencies and weight loss. Objective: To determine the prevalence of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy and its associated factors at 3 teaching Hospitals in Ethiopia. Methods: A hospital based cross-sectional study was done. A structured questionnaire containing modified PUQE 24 score was administered by trained data collectors. SPSS for windows version 23 was used for data analysis and statistical significance was assessed using the odds ratios, 95% confidence intervals, and p values. Results: The prevalence of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy (NVP) was 74.9%, out of which 19.7%, 43.4% and 11.7% were mild, moderate and severe types respectively. Three hundred and fifty pregnant women were included in the study. Previous history of nausea and vomiting [AOR = 2.28 (CI0.057-0.272) and], multiple gestation [AOR = 7.054 CI (1.892-26.309)] and family history of HEG [AOR = 5.134 (CI 1.864-14.140)] were strongly associated nausea and vomiting in pregnancy. Conclusions: The prevalence of NVP in our study was 76.4%, which is similar to the reports from previous studies. Women with personal history of NVP, family history of NVP, and multiple gestation have an increased susceptibility to develop NVP. Identification of such risk factors is important in pre-pregnancy counselling.