Table. 1.
Enrolment characteristics of pregnant women and association with areca nut use (n = 2700)
| Characteristics | Non-users | Occasional users (<1/day) | Mild users (1-2/day) | Moderate users (3–5/day) | Heavy users (≥6/day) | Pa | Pb | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Areca nut | 16.7 | (451) | 11.5 | (310) | 24.1 | (650) | 27.3 | (736) | 20.5 | (553) | - | - |
| Smoking | 5.3 | (24/451) | 13.6 | (42/310) | 16.2 | (105/650) | 22.0 | (162/736) | 32.2 | (178/553) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Alcohol | 2.5 | (11/444) | 5.2 | (16/309) | 4.9 | (32/649) | 5.6 | (41/735) | 6.4 | (35/551) | 0.07 | 0.007 |
| Rural residence | 57.0 | (257/451) | 56.5 | (175/310) | 63.7 | (414/650) | 63.7 | (469/736) | 66.9 | (370/553) | 0.003 | 0.009 |
| Highlands origin | 12.2 | (55/451) | 8.4 | (26/310) | 4.6 | (30/650) | 4.8 | (35/736) | 4.0 | (22/553) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Literate | 89.6 | (404/451) | 90.9 | (281/309) | 89.4 | (580/649) | 89.9 | (660/734) | 86.9 | (479/551) | 0.36 | 0.80 |
| Generates income | 50.1 | (221/441) | 55.7 | (165/296) | 57.4 | (347/605) | 57.9 | (402/694) | 55.7 | (293/526) | 0.11 | 0.009 |
| Anaemia (Hb < 11 g/dL) | 73.4 | (318/433) | 82.7 | (239/289) | 81.9 | (514/628) | 84.1 | (590/702) | 85.0 | (446/525) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Malariac | 6.7 | (30/449) | 10.0 | (31/310) | 8.3 | (54/648) | 7.0 | (51/734) | 5.3 | (29/551) | 0.09 | 0.62 |
| Primigravidae | 52.8 | (238/451) | 62.6 | (194/310) | 58.5 | (380/650) | 44.7 | (329/736) | 38.5 | (213/553) | <0.001 | 0.22 |
| MUAC <23 cm | 26.3 | (115/437) | 17.1 | (52/304) | 31.3 | (200/639) | 30.0 | (215/716) | 27.1 | (148/547) | <0.001 | 0.50 |
| Age (years) | 24.0 | [20.0–28.0] | 23.0 | [20.0–26.0] | 22.0 | [19.0–26.0] | 24.0 | [20.0–28.0] | 25.0 | [21.0–29.0] | <0.001 | 0.22 |
| Haemoglobin (g/dL) | 9.9 | [9.2–11.0] | 9.8 | [9.0–10.6] | 9.6 | [8.8–10.6] | 9.6 | [8.8–10.4] | 9.5 | [8.6–10.3] | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Mean arterial pressure | 78.0 | [71.7–84.3] | 77.7 | [72.0–84.7] | 78.0 | [71.7–83.7] | 77.0 | [71.0–83.3] | 76.0 | [69.7–82.0] | 0.004 | 0.16 |
| Fundal height (cm) | 22.0 | [18.0–24.0] | 22.0 | [19.0–24.0] | 22.0 | [19.0–24.0] | 22.0 | [20.0–24.0] | 22.8 | [20.0–24.0] | <0.001 | 0.006 |
NOTE: Data are % (no. /total), or median [IQR]; p-values are for comparisons across the different groups of chewers. MUAC mid-upper arm circumference
a P-values for comparison across all 5 groups. Bonferroni adjusted cut-off of significance: P = 0.005
b P-values for comparison of users (occasional, mild, moderate, heavy) versus non-users
cBy light microscopy, any Plasmodium spp