Assessment of the Prevalence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus and Associated Factors among Women Attending Antenatal Care at Arba Minch Town Public Health Facilities, Southern Ethiopia

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a high blood sugar condition that some women acquire during pregnancy which could have devastating effects on both the mother and baby if left untreated. In most of the developing countries including Ethiopia, women are rarely screened for GDM during ANC visits. It was previously estimated that gestational diabetes occurs in four to nine percent of pregnant women in Ethiopia. So, the aim of this study was to assess prevalence of GDM and associated factors among women attending antenatal care at Arba Minch town public health facilities. Institution based cross sectional study design was employed among 380 pregnant women’s visiting antenatal care clinic. Women were enrolled if they had fulfilled inclusion criteria during the study period. Data was collected using a pre-test structured interviewer administered questionnaire September 2019 to November, 2019. Descriptive statistics was done. Results were summarized and presented by tables, charts and graphs. The prevalence of GDM was 7.1%. Nearly one-third of the respondents, 247(65%) had two or more pregnancies, with mean gestational age of 25 weeks. Half of the respondents, 187(49.2%) were multi-para. Of 380 pregnant women, 53(13.9%) had previous history of stillbirth. Maternal age, educational level, parity, history of having macrocosmic baby, previous history of GDM and family history of type II DM were associated with GDM. Older ages, low educational level, grand multipara, having macrosomic baby and history of type II diabetes mellitus were factors associated with increased risks of gestational diabetes mellitus. Therefore, to enhance maternal and child health, improving screening, treatment, and prevention strategies for gestational diabetes mellitus is necessary.