Abstract:
Pregnant mothers are at considerable risk of malarial infection in Ethiopia. Indoor residual
spraying (IRS) and long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) are two core interventions for control
and prevention of malaria infection. However, its utilization among pregnant mothers was
unsatisfactory. This descriptive cross-sectional study was aimed to determine the knowledge
and practices of pregnant women regarding malaria and its preventive measures in a malarious
area Abobo district, Gambella, Ethiopia.The study was conducted from October to December
2024. Data was collected from 430 pregnant mothers through a two-stage random cluster
sampling method in eight villages. Pre-tested structured questionnaire was used to collect data.
During the survey, visual observations were also made by the interviewers to check use of
LLINs and IRS. The data were analyzed by SPSS software version 21. The majority of
households had a high level of knowledge about symptoms (98%, n=392) and transmission
(74.5%, n=298) of malaria. The main preventive measures against malaria were: LLINS
(39.5%, n=158), IRS (32%, n=128), and others. In addition, participants with primary or higher
educational level reported that they practice more malaria preventive measures, compared to
those who were illiterate (OR=3.3, 95% CI= 1.6–6.6, p=0.0001, Table 6). In spite of positive
perceptions about IRS and LLINs, only 35.5% (n=149) and 17% (n=68) of households used
IRS and LLINs, respectively. According to the results of this study, despite a high level of
knowledge about malaria and its preventive measures, a small number of participants use
LLINs and IRS for malaria prevention. Therefore, implementation of effective educational
interventions is recommended to improve preventive practices against malaria in the study area.
