Prevalence of gestrointestinal symptoms in pregnancy

Abstract

Objectives: This study is aimed at determining the prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms among healthy pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.

Methods: Questionnaires were randomly administered to consecutive antenatal clinic attendees until the sample size was reached.

Results: Three hundred and seventy pregnant women were interviewed. Heart burns, easy fullness and nausea were the commonest gastrointestinal symptoms in 45%, 40.2% and 39.9% of cases respectively. Primigravidae had significantly more symptoms than multiparae. There were also significantly more gastrointestinal symptoms in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Conclusion: Gastrointestinal symptoms are common among healthy pregnant women. And even though these represent well-known physiological changes, they must be carefully assessed to exclude any pathological disorder that may require intervention.

Keywords: pregnancy, gastrointestinal symptoms

Nigerian Journal of Clinical Practice Vol. 9(1) 2006: 1-6