Table 1.
Baseline socio-demographic characteristics of study participants.
| Socio-demographic characteristics | Sub-category | Miscarriage to LMP interval ⩾6 months (n = 448) |
Miscarriage to LMP interval <6 months (n = 257) |
p |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mothers’ age (years) | <20 | 2 (0.4%) | 3 (1.2%) | 0.309 |
| 20–34 | 352 (78.6%) | 209 (81.3%) | ||
| ⩾35 | 94 (21.0%) | 45 (17.5%) | ||
| Marital status | Single | 1 (0.2%) | 2 (0.8%) | 0.558 |
| Married | 447 (99.8%) | 255 (99.2%) | ||
| Educational qualification | Primary education and below | 37 (8.3%) | 18 (7.0%) | 0.565 |
| Secondary education and above | 411 (91.7%) | 239 (93.0%) | ||
| Occupation | Not employed | 98 (21.9%) | 65 (25.3%) | 0.309 |
| Employed | 350 (78.1%) | 192 (74.7%) | ||
| Religion | Christianity | 439 (98.0%) | 246 (95.7%) | 0.099 |
| Islam | 9 (2.0%) | 11 (4.3%) | ||
| Parity | 0 | 151 (33.7%) | 81 (31.5%) | 0.136 |
| 1–4 | 274 (61.2%) | 170 (66.1%) | ||
| ⩾5 | 23 (5.1%) | 6 (2.3%) | ||
| No. of miscarriages in the past | 1 miscarriage in the past | 311 (69.4%) | 188 (73.2%) | 0.303 |
| ⩾2 miscarriages in the past | 137 (30.6%) | 69 (26.8%) | ||
| Gestational age of last miscarriage (weeks) | 1–13 | 367 (81.9%) | 215 (83.7%) | 0.607 |
| ⩾14 | 81 (18.1%) | 42 (16.3%) | ||
| How was the last miscarriage managed? | Expectant management | 54 (12.1%) | 25 (9.7%) | 0.014 |
| Medical management with uterotonics | 56 (12.5%) | 53 (20.6%) | ||
| Manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) | 338 (75.4%) | 179 (69.7%) | ||
| Post-abortal complication in previous miscarriages a | Haemorrhage | 4 (0.9%) | 1 (0.4%) | 0.658 |
| Retained products of conception | 3 (0.7%) | 1 (0.4%) | 1.000 | |
| Cervical incompetence b | 2 (0.4%) | 1 (0.4%) | 1.000 | |
| Delayed fertility c | 27 (6.0%) | 6 (2.3%) | 0.026 | |
| Pyrexia | 8 (1.8%) | 4 (1.6%) | 1.000 | |
| Uterine synechiae | 11 (2.5%) | 3 (1.2%) | 0.277 |
LMP: last menstrual period.
a
More than one complication can apply in a respondent.
b
Cervical incompetence was diagnosed in those with two more previous miscarriages before the index pregnancy.
c
Delayed fertility is defined as being unable to conceive for 1 year after the last miscarriage despite desiring to conceive.