Abstract:

Complications from miscarriages and unsafe abortion often lead to short and long term morbidities. About 40% of maternal deaths in Nigeria are attributable to complications from miscarriage and unsafe abortion. Seasonal variations in the incidence and prevalence of spontaneous miscarriage have been reported in other climes but there is no literature describing this phenomenon in Nigeria.

This analysis aimed to determine if there was a seasonal variation in the prevalence of post abortion complications cases managed in Kano State, Nigeria.

This analysis was based on a retrospective review of records of all women who presented for treatment of post abortion complications in 30 hospitals over a 36 months period. Stata SE version 14 was used for analysis.

Aggregated monthly number of cases over the three year period revealed a cyclical pattern with two dips in December and June and a peak around the months of February and March. This pattern remained consistent when the data was disaggregated into the different years. No statistically significant difference was observed in the number of PAC cases treated during the rainy season compared to those treated in the dry season. However, there was a statistically significant difference in the number of PAC cases treated in the first year compared to the second and third year.

Findings from this study indicates that there was no difference in the number of PAC cases treated in Kano state during the rainy season compared to those treated during the dry season. The number of cases treated however, appeared to differ across years.

Keywords: Miscarriage, Complication, Post-abortion care, Post-abortion contraception, seasonal, Trimester.

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