Abstract:
Short birth interval is defined as the time less than 33 months between previous
and current births. Currently short birth interval is becoming a serious problem of low and
middle-income countries. However, there is paucity of evidence on magnitude, associated factors
and its adverse pregnancy outcomes in Ethiopia, particularly in study setting.
Objective: To assess the magnitude of short birth interval, associated factors and its adverse
pregnancy outcomes among women who gave birth in Chiro town public health institution, West
Hararghe Zone, Ethiopia.
Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted among 420 women
who gave birth at public health institution in Chiro town, western Ethiopia from April 8 to June 7
,2024. All public health institution found in chiro town was included and systematic random
sampling was used to select study participants. Data were collected by face to face interview
using a structured questionnaire. The data were collected by using kobo collect v2024.1.3 and
exported to SPSS version 26 for analysis. Binary logistic regression was performed to identify
factors associated with short birth interval and AOR along with 95% CI was used to decide the
strength and direction of association. Finally, P-value < 0.05 was used to declare statistical
significance.
Results: This study revealed that about 46.9% (95% CI: 42.4–51.5) of study participants had
reported short birth interval. Women whose sex of index child was female (AOR:1.5;95%
CI:1.0-2.177), lack of information about contraceptives (AOR:6.3;95% CI:3.027-12.76), women
whose index child was dead (AOR:10.5;95% CI:2.417-46.2), women who breastfeed index child
< 24 months (AOR:5.2;95% CI:3.379-8.024) and women who give birth of index child at home
(AOR:4.6;95%CI:1.856-11.763) were factors which positively associated with short birth
interval.
Conclusion: This study indicated that the magnitude of short birth interval among women who
gave birth in chiro town public health institution was high. Women whose sex of index child was
female, lack of information about contraceptives, Participants whose index child was dead,
women who breastfeed index child < 24 months and women who give birth of index child at
home were factors associated with short birth interval.
