OBJECTIVE Community based prospective study was carried out to know
about the occurrence of miscarriages in context of Biomass fuel use by
rural tribal, pregnant women. DESIGN Cross-sectional analysis. SETTING
Villages and Dr. Sushila Nayar Hospital, Utavali, Melghat, Amravati
Maharashtra. POPULATION Study in 100 villages, all pregnancies included.
METHODS After approval of the institute’s ethics committee, study was
conducted in 100 villages. After base information, villages were divided
into 50 study, 50 controls, subdivided into 40 study villages with
advocacy for protection from ill effects of Biomass fuel, 40
non-advocacy controls and 10 study villages where in addition to
advocacy Chimneys were fixed on roofs of huts with no windows, for exit
of smoke and 10 controls where neither advocacy was done nor Chimneys
were fixed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Change in occurrence of miscarriage
with Biomass fuel use. RESULTS In 50 study villages, of 1005
pregnancies, 2.8% reported miscarriages and in 50 controls, of 1097
pregnancies 3.1% had miscarriage. Of 2700 pregnancies in 40 Advocacy
study villages 6.6%, of 40 controls of 2700 pregnancies, 10.5% had
miscarriages. In 10 villages with Advocacy as well as Chimneys, of 700
pregnancies, 2.4% had miscarriages in 10 controls, of 700 pregnancies
5.6% ended in miscarriages. In first year it could have been
underreporting. CONCLUSION In rural tribal women miscarriages were not
more than globally known, but Biomass fuel did affect occurrence of
miscarriages.
Household biomass fuel use, asthma symptoms severity, and asthma underdiagnosis in rural schoolchildren in Nigeria: a cross-sectional observational study
