Prevalence of clinical malaria and associated symptoms in pregnant women at Hamusit health center, Northwest Ethiopia.

Background: Malaria is the disease caused by intracellular parasites known as Methods: A health facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 231 malaria symptomatic pregnant women from April to June 2023. A convenience sampling technique was employed. The socio demographic and clinical data of the study participants was collected through face-to-face interview using questionnaire. Thick and thin blood films were prepared from capillary blood and stained with 10 % Giemsa. The stained blood smear was washed with clean water, air dried and examined under a light microscope. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences software version 20 (SPSS 20) was used to analyses data. Logistic regression was used to assess signs and symptoms associated with malaria. An adjusted odds ratio with a 95 % confidence interval was calculated, and a P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The overall prevalence of malaria among symptomatic pregnant women in the study area was 22.9 % (53/231) (95 % CI: 17.3-29 %). The most prevalent species was Conclusions: Malaria positivity in pregnant women with fever, joint pain, vomiting, malaise and fatigue is considerably high in the study area. These signs and symptoms in pregnant women are strong indicators of malaria infection.