Knowledge, practice and patterns of antenatal exercise among pregnant women: a comparative study of urban and rural dwellers in Enugu, Nigeria

Abstract

Regular antenatal exercise is recommended for its maternal and foetal health benefits. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of literature on the antenatal exercise practices of pregnant women in Enugu State, relative to their geographical locations. This study compared the knowledge, practice and pattern of antenatal exercise among pregnant women in urban and rural areas of Enugu State, Nigeria. Three hundred consenting pregnant women (Urban- 194; Rural- 106) with a mean age of 27.6±6.1 years, conveniently recruited from four urban and four rural hospitals participated in this study. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on their sociodemographic and obstetrics characteristics, knowledge, practice and pattern of antenatal exercise. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and inferential statistics of Mann-Whitney U test and Pearson’s Chi-square. Majority of the women (urban-97.4%, rural-90.6%) had knowledge of antenatal exercises with preponderance in the urban women (p=0.009). Urban women significantly (p<0.001) showed higher (90.7%) practice of antenatal exercises. compared to rural women (72.6%). Lack of interest was the commonest factor limiting antenatal exercise practice by majority of the women. Most women practiced aerobics exercises (urban-49.4%, rural-67.5%). Urbandwelling pregnant women showed more positive knowledge and practice of ANE, compared to the rural dwellers.