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Consumption of Alcoholic Beverages Among Pregnant Urban Ugandan Women

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Abstract

The World Health Organization estimated alcohol consumption in Uganda to be one of the highest in the world. We examined alcohol consumption among Ugandan women prior to and after learning of pregnancy. We developed a screening algorithm using factors that predicted alcohol consumption in this study. In 2006, we surveyed 610 women attending antenatal care at the national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda about consumption of traditional and commercial alcoholic beverages before and after learning of pregnancy. Predictors of alcohol consumption during pregnancy were examined and a practical screening algorithm was developed for use in antenatal clinics. One hundred eighty women (30%) drank alcohol at least monthly before learning of their pregnancy. Among these women, almost one-third reported usual consumption of at least one beverage type at quantities that equal binging levels for women. Overall, 151 women (25%) consumed alcohol after learning of pregnancy. Commercial beverages, particularly beer, were consumed more often than traditional drinks. A two-stage screening algorithm asking women about their religion, male partner or friends’ drinking, and any lifetime drinking predicted self-reported consumption of alcohol during pregnancy with 97% sensitivity and 89% specificity. Alcohol consumption among pregnant Ugandan women attending antenatal care is high. A feasible screening algorithm can help providers target education and counseling to women who are likely drinking during pregnancy. Given the preference for commercial alcoholic beverages, it is recommended that labels be placed prominently on bottled alcoholic beverages warning of the adverse effects of consuming alcohol during pregnancy.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported in part by grants from the National Institutes of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (AA015488); the Fogarty International Center International Clinical, Operational, and Health Services Research and Training Award (TW0006900); and the Case/University Hospitals of Cleveland Center For AIDS Research (AI36219).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, 10900 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH, 44106-4945, USA

    Imelda Namagembe, Leila W. Jackson, Melissa D. Zullo, Scott H. Frank & Ajay K. Sethi

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, Mulago Hospital and Makerere University, P.O. Box 7051, Kampala, Uganda

    Imelda Namagembe

  3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, Mulago Hospital and Makerere University, P.O. Box 7072, Kampala, Uganda

    Josaphat K. Byamugisha

  4. Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health, 610 Walnut Street, 587 WARF, Madison, WI, 53726-2397, USA

    Ajay K. Sethi

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  1. Imelda Namagembe
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  2. Leila W. Jackson
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  3. Melissa D. Zullo
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  4. Scott H. Frank
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  6. Ajay K. Sethi
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Correspondence to Ajay K. Sethi.

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Namagembe, I., Jackson, L.W., Zullo, M.D. et al. Consumption of Alcoholic Beverages Among Pregnant Urban Ugandan Women. Matern Child Health J 14, 492–500 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-009-0500-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-009-0500-3

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