International Journal of Reproductive Medicine

Background。Maternal mortality has remained a challenge in Tanzania. The Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey 2015-16 has shown that the problem has been increasing despite various strategies instituted to curb it. It has been shown that most of the maternal deaths occurring in health facilities, whether direct or indirect, have other contributing factors. The objective of this study was to analyse causes and associated factors for maternal deaths in Dodoma Regional Referral Hospital (DRRH).Methods。A retrospective review of all files of the women who died in 2018 and were classified as maternal deaths.Results。A total of 8722 women gave birth in DRRH, out of which 35 died and were confirmed as maternal deaths. The number of live births was 8404 making the maternal mortality ratio of 417 per 100,000 live births. The leading causes of maternal death were eclampsia (9), sepsis (6), ruptured uterus (5), and haemorrhage (5). The third-phase delay was the leading contributing factor to 19 maternal deaths. This includes delays in referral from another facility as well as delays in getting treatment at DRRH and inadequate skills of providers at both the referring facilities and DRRH. The first-phase and second-phase delays contributed to 7 and 6 deaths, respectively. Furthermore, poor antenatal care contributed to 2 deaths.Conclusion。Maternal mortality is still high in Dodoma Regional Referral Hospital. Eclampsia was the leading cause of maternal deaths in 2018 followed by sepsis and obstetric haemorrhage. Delays associated with health system factors (third-phase delay) contributed much more to maternal mortality than the first-phase delay. Mentorship programmes on management of obstetric complications need to be instituted in order to reduce maternal deaths in Dodoma Regional Referral Hospital.

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Background。High fertility remains one of the most important public health issues hampering the health and welfare of mothers and the survival of their children in developing nations. In Ethiopia, the high fertility rate has been seen for a long historical period with some pocket areas of high fertility still showing poor improvement. Hence, this study was aimed at determining the magnitude of high fertility status (number of children ever born )and associated factors among women of the reproductive age group in Wonago district.Methods。A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on randomly selected 512 women in Wonago district. Data were collected using a pretested structured interviewer administered questionnaire. Data was entered into EpiData version 3.1 and then analyzed by SPSS version 25. Logistic regression was used to analyze the data, and the adjusted odds ratio with the 95% confidence interval was computed, and a significant association was declared atvalue ≤ 0.05.Result。This study revealed that 354 (69.1%) of the respondents have high fertility. High fertility is independently associated with residing in rural area [ ,95% CI: 3.21, 7.86], desire for children [ ,95% CI: 3.24, 11.40], history of under-five child mortality [AOR =5.32, 95% CI: 2.59, 8.43], poor knowledge of contraception [ ,95% CI: 1.66, 4.04], and low wealth tertile [ ,95% CI: 1.51, 3.58]. On the other hand, women with age at first birth above 18 years [ ,95% CI: 0.17, 0.68] and those with birth months [ ,26, 95% CI: 0.14, 0.49] were less likely to have high fertility.Conclusion and Recommendation。The substantial number of women in the study area has high fertility status far away from the country’s costed implementation plan of reducing the total fertility rate to 3.0. Considering these, much is needed to be done among poor, rural residents, who have not yet attained their desired number of children, and on enhancing the knowledge of mothers towards contraceptive methods.

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The reduced sperm mobility is one of the most important causes of male infertility. Several reports have indicated that the treatment of subnormal sperm samples with certain agents prior to artificial insemination significantly improves the fertilizing potential of sperm. We have among others some stimulants such as pentoxifylline, relaxin, prostaglandin E, and diltiazem. In our precedent work, we had tested the effect of supplementation with three essential oils, namely, sage (Salvia officinalis), oregano (Origanum vulgare), and eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus), on sperm cell mobility and vitality. Oregano oil had shown interesting biological properties by giving the best values of progressive mobility and vitality. In this study, we aim to verify the effect of oregano oil supplementation on the advanced parameters of mobility and on the integrity of the sperm DNA of 25 male infertile volunteers. Our results showed that oregano oil over an incubation period of 5 to 10 min of exposure significantly improves the advanced parameters of mobility, namely, curvilinear velocity (VCL), linear velocity (VSL), the mean velocity of the path (VAP), and the amplitude of the displacement (ALH). The effect of the increase in the VCL decreased the linearity (LIN), the mean line (STR), and the mean wobble (WOB). Oregano oil at 5 min had no significant effect on the DNA fragmentation index (DFI) and sperm decondensation index (SDI). However, at 10 min, it had a significant effect on both DFI and SDI. The analysis of our results showed that this plant oil rich in terpenoids and phenolic antioxidants could be a quite good in vitro additive with high potential for the world of medically assisted reproduction.

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The human uterus consists of the inner endometrium, the myometrium, and the outer serosa. Knowledge of the function of the uterus in health and disease is relevant to reproduction, fertility, embryology, gynaecology, endocrinology, and oncology. Research performed on uterine biopsies is essential to further the current understanding of human uterine biology. This brief review explores the value of the uterine biopsy in gynaecological and human fertility research and explores the common problems encountered when analysing data generated from different types of uterine biopsies, with the aim of improving the quality, reproducibility, and clinical translatability of future research.

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Background。An estimated 303,000 maternal deaths occurred globally in 2015 from which sub-Saharan Africa alone accounted for 201,000 (66%) of the maternal deaths, and most of these are attributed to complications of pregnancy and childbirth due to the absence of institutional delivery by skilled attendants.Objective。The aim of this study was to assess institutional delivery utilization and associated factors among mothers who gave birth in the last one year in Chelia District.Methodology。A community-based cross-sectional study design supplemented by a qualitative method was employed from March 15 to 30, 2018. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 475 study participants. Quantitative data were collected using structured questionnaires, and focus group discussions were employed to get qualitative data. The data were entered to EpiData version 3.1 and exported to the statistical package version 21 for analysis. Descriptive statistics and bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were computed to measure the strength of association between dependent and independent variables at avalue of <0.05.Results。Among the respondents, 216 (46.2%) utilized institutional delivery service. Monthly income ( , ),antenatal care attendance ( , ),knowledge of mothers about their expected date of delivery ( , ),intended pregnancy ( , ),discussion with health extension workers about the place of delivery at home visit ( , ),knowledge of mothers about the existence of the waiting area in health facilities ( , ),and number of children ( , )had a significant association with institutional delivery utilization.Conclusion。Utilization of institutional delivery was low and far away from the expected country target in the district. The health sector should strive to increase proportion of institutional delivery by reaching pregnant mothers with timely antenatal care service provision and enhancing family planning provision.

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Background。Access to proper medical attention and hygienic conditions during delivery can reduce the risk of complications and infections that may lead to serious illness or death or for the mother, baby, or both. In Ethiopia, the high maternal mortality rate with delivery by unskilled birth attendants shows low utilization of maternal health services.Objective。This study was aimed at assessing factors determining the choice of childbirth place among women of childbearing age in Jimma Arjo District.Method。A cross-sectional design was conducted in Jimma Arjo District, East Wollega Zone, Ethiopia, from March 20 to April 20, 2018. Multistage sampling technique was used to select a total sample of 506 participants. Data were collected using structured questionnaires to interview women of childbearing age with two trained data collectors. Data was entered into Epi Info and exported to SPSS software version 20 for analysis. Data was checked for its completeness, cleaned, entered, and analyzed accordingly. Bivariate and multivariable data analyses were used to examine factors affecting choice of childbirth place.Results。A total of 506 women participated in this study, giving a response rate of 97.8%. The study investigated that home delivery was found to be 200 (39.5%)in the study area. Factors found to be statistically associated with choice of institutional delivery at were history of obstetric difficulties ( , ),woman educational status ( , ),husband educational status ( , ),two or more ANC visits ( , ),and accessibility to vehicle transportation ( , ).Conclusion。喜欢卫生设施的诞生地this study seems relatively better compared to other studies. It is shown that both mothers and their husbands attending secondary and greater educational level, history of obstetric difficulties, two or more ANC visits, and physical accessibility to health care facility have influenced mothers to prefer a health institution as the childbirth place. Therefore, any programs aimed at increasing the choice of institutional delivery should work on increasing ANC attendance and transportation facilities in the study area.

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