Prevalence of Vaginal Candidiasis among Pregnant Women in Nnewi Town of Anambra State, Nigeria: A Recent Perspective | Chapter 13 | Theory and Applications of Microbiology and Biotechnology Vol. 3
Vaginal candidiasis (VC) is a common genital tract infection that affects mostly women especially the pregnant women leading to complications as abortions, premature birth, low birth weight among others. Vaginal specimens were collected from 300 pregnant women attending pre-natal visits in three selected hospitals in Nnewi, Anambra State, Nigeria using sterile swab sticks. Specimens were cultured in Sabouraud and blood agar media under sterile condition. All pregnant patients were considered throughout the period of the study, having obtained an informed consent from them. Chisquare analysis of data indicated that ninety patients were positive for candidiasis, a prevalence rate of 30.0%. Furthermore, pregnant women aged 26 to 30 recorded the highest prevalence (13.669; df = 5) that was statistically significant (p<0.05). The women who in their third trimester of pregnancy were mostly infected (6.163; df = 2) with infection status which was highly significant (p<0.05). The sympto...