Abstract:
Introduction: Self-medication is the selection and use of medicine by individuals to treat self-recognized
illnesses or symptoms. Self-medication during pregnancy is a global issue that demands significant
attention because it could endanger both the pregnant woman and the unborn child.
Objectives: To assessed the magnitude of self -medication and associated factors among pregnant women
attending antenatal care in Ambo town public health Institutions, Oromia, Ethiopia, 2023.
Methods: A facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 330 pregnant women attending
Antenatal care follow-up at selected health facilities in Ambo town. A simple random sampling technique
was used to select the respondents. A pretested structured questionnaire was employed to collect data.
The collected data were entered into Epi-data version 3.1 and exported into the Statistical Package for
Social Science (SPSS) version 25 for analysis. Descriptive statistics were computed to describe variables
of the study. Variables with p-value < 0.25 in binary logistic regression model were included in multi -
variable logistic regression analysis. Finally, odds ratio at 95% CI was used to see the strength of
association, and variables that showed a p-value < 0.05 in multi -variable logistic regression model were
considered as statistically significant. The findings were presented by text, table and graphs.
Results: The study showed that the magnitude of self -medication during current pregnancy was 40.6%
(95% CI: 35.6-45.3).Out of which the magnitude of conventional and herbal medicine during current
pregnancy was 31.2% (95% CI: 26.2-36.5%) and 23.3% (95% CI: 18.9-28.30) respectively. Participants
with age >34 years old (AOR=4.511, 95% CI: 1.211-16.801), living in urban areas (AOR=.039, 95% CI:
.003-.490], having health insurance (AOR=.143, 95%: CI ;.051-.406),being on first trimester gestational
age (AOR=5.177,95% CI:1.026-26.120) and previous history of abortion (AOR= 3.277, 95% CI: 1.227 -
8.7538) had statistically significant association with self –medication.
Conclusion: In the study setting, self-medication was high among pregnant women, when compared to
the majority of earlier research carried out in Ethiopia. This suggests need of urgent intervention. The
findings of this study indicated that self-medication was statistically associated with factors such as age,
location of residency, health insurance, gestational age, and prior abortion. Therefore, all pregnant women
receiving antenatal care must receive appropriate counseling regarding the risks associated with self-medication during pregnancy for both the mother and the fetus
