Abstract:
Background: Birth asphyxia is a serious clinical problem of newborn babies, which occurs
due to impaired blood-gas exchange and results in hypoxemia. Despite improvements in the
diagnosis and management of perinatal asphyxia, it has become the leading cause of admission
and neonatal mortality, especially in developing countries.
Objective: To assess the prevalence and associated factors of birth asphyxia among live birth
in public health facilities in AkakiKality sub city in Addis Ababa Ethiopia, 2022.
Method:Health facility-based cross-sectional study was employed from the public health
facilities of the sub city among 355 postnatal mother-newborn pairs. Simple random sampling
techniques were used to all public health facilities. The data was collected by random sampling
technique, entered by using Epi data 4.6 and analyzed using SPSS 25 version. Bivariate and
multivariable logistic regression analyses were employed to estimate the crude and adjusted odds
ratio with a confidence interval of 95% and P value of less than 0.05 considered statistically
significant. Frequency tables and descriptive summaries were used to describe the study
variables.
Result:The overall prevalence of birth asphyxia among live birth was found to be
22.3%.Multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated that neonates delivered from
primiparous mother [(AOR: 0.21, 95%CI: (0.06, 0.78)], C/S delivery [(AOR: 0.19, 95%CI:
(0.04, 0.90)] and prolonged labor duration [(AOR: 32.59, 95% CI :( 11.35, 93.54)] were more
likely affected by birth asphyxia.
Conclusion and Recommendation: The prevalence of birth asphyxia in AkakiKality sub city of Addis Ababa was high. In this study; parity of the mothers, mode of delivery and duration
of labor were the factors associated with birth asphyxia. Health care providers should make strict
fetomaternal follow ups aided by ultrasound and early detect abnormality and should always be
accompanied with immediate decisions for emergency obstetrics and newborn care interventions.
Keyword: Asphyxia, neonatal, hypoxemia, prevalence, birth, Health center
