Accuracy and cost-analysis of placental alpha-microglobulin-1 test in the diagnosis of premature rupture of fetal membranes in resource-limited community settings.

AIM: To determine accuracy and costs of placental α-microglobulin-1 (PAMG-1) test compared to standard clinical assessment (SCA) for diagnosing rupture of membranes (ROM). METHODS: A multicenter double-blind study of consecutive women with symptoms and signs of ROM in Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi and University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, both in south-east Nigeria using SCA for ROM and the PAMG-1 test was done. ROM was diagnosed if two out of three methods from SCA (pooling, positive nitrazine test or ferning) were present and confirmed post-delivery based on presence of any two of these clinical criteria: delivery in 48 h to 7 days, evidence of chorioamnionitis, membranes overtly ruptured at delivery and adverse perinatal outcomes strongly correlated with prolonged PROM. A cost-analysis was also done. The outcome measures included sensitivity, specificity, accuracy and costs for the two tests. RESULTS: Accuracy, sensitivity and specificity for the PAMG-1 test were 97.2%, 97.4% and 96.7%, higher than for SCA which were 83.7%, 87.9% and 70.5%, respectively (P < 0.001). Accuracy of SCA was higher at less than 34 weeks than 34 weeks or more (88.3% vs 81.4%) while the PAMG-1 test performed equally at both gestational age categories (96.1% vs 97.7%). In women without pooling, accuracy of the PAMG-1 test was 96.7%, while it was 40.0% with SCA. Analysis showed that the overall cost of SCA was 45% higher than the PAMG-1 test. CONCLUSION: This study confirms that the PAMG-1 test has a consistently high diagnostic accuracy at all gestational ages and with equivocal cases of ROM. The PAMG-1 test appears less costly than SCA.

Factors associated with the use of maternity services in Enugu, southeastern Nigeria.

The maternal mortality ratio and other maternal health indicators are worse for developing countries than for the developed world due to improved access to quality care during pregnancy and especially at delivery in the industrialized world. This study was carried out to identify the factors which influenced choice of place of delivery by pregnant women in Enugu, southeastern Nigeria, and to recommend ways to improve women's access to skilled attendants at delivery. A pre-tested questionnaire was administered by interviewers to women who had delivered within 3 months prior to date of data collection. The response rate was 75.5% (n=1098). Of the respondents, 52.9% delivered outside health institutions and 47.1% in health institutions. The major factors influencing choice of place of delivery included promptness of care, competence of midwife/doctor, affordability, health education, 24 h presence of doctors, team work among doctors and presence of specialist obstetricians. There were statistically significant associations between choice of institutional or non-institutional deliveries and socio-demographic/economic factors such as place of residence (urban/rural), religion, educational status, tribe, marital status, occupational level, husband's occupational and educational levels, age and parity (p<0.05). We conclude that factors which will positively influence women to deliver in health institutions in Enugu, Nigeria include a variety of interacting social, economic and health system factors, which operate at various levels-the household, community, the health institutions and the larger social and political environment. Attention to these factors will not only improve maternity utilization but, hopefully, also will reduce the high maternal mortality and improve other maternal health indicators in the study area.