A Comparison of Prenatal Maternal Care between Wanted and Unwanted Pregnancies

Introduction: Unwanted pregnancies are one of the major problems in developing countries. This research aimed to answer the question whether women with unwanted pregnancies seek the health care they need. Methods: In this descriptive-analytical study, 270 pregnant women referring to Shahroud hospitals to terminate their pregnancies were studied through the census method and were divided into two groups of wanted and unwanted pregnancies. A self questionnaire was used to collect data and it was completed through personal interviews and referring to mothers’ health files. The data were analyzed via Chi-square and Mann-Whitney U test. Results: The results of the study showed significant differences between pre-pregnancy counseling, the number of referrals to the clinic, the time of folic acid consumption, regular consumption of iron tablets, routine pregnancy testing and optimal weight gain between the two groups of wanted and unwanted pregnancy (P>0.05). Mann Whitney U test showed a significant difference between the mean time of first visit for prenatal care (P=0.004), and the average number of referrals to midwifery clinic in wanted and unwanted pregnancies (P=0.003). Conclusion: Since prenatal care prevents during-pregnancy and delivery problems, attempts must be made to remove the obstacles on this way. Unwanted pregnancies are among the factors that play important roles in irregular referring to prenatal care clinics and render these groups as high risk in their pregnancies.