1.1 Introduction
High blood pressure occurs when one’s blood move through the arteries at a higher speed than normal. It is also known that for now there is no cure for high blood pressure (Papadakis et al., 2008). Pregnancy induced hypertension (PIH) is classified according to the severity of hypertension. Women with pregnancy induced hypertension are at a greater risk of abruption placentae, cerebrovascular events, organ failure and disseminated intravascular coagulation (Kintiraki et al., 2015). Treatment of PIH depends on blood pressure levels, gestational age, presence of symptoms and associated risk factors. Blood pressure thresholds for drug management in pregnancy vary between different health’s organizations (Katon et al., 2012).
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitation of the study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
Hypertension is a common complication of pregnancy. Preeclampsia, in particular, is associated with substantial risk to both the mother and the fetus. Several risk factors have been recognized to predict risk for preeclampsia (Solomon and Seely, 2011). However, at present no biomarkers have sufficient discriminatory ability to be useful in clinical practice, and no effective preventive strategies have yet been identified (Solomon and Seely, 2011). Commonly used medications for the treatment of hypertension in pregnancy include methyldopa and labetalol. Blood pressure thresholds for initiating antihypertensive therapy are higher than outside of pregnancy. Women with prior preeclampsia are at increased risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and renal disease (Suzuki et al., 2015).
The seriousness of this adult illness (high blood pressure) is not just that it can lead to more serious illness or complications, raises the risk of stroke, kidney failure, heart disease and heart attack. The matter is made worse with the existence of too much weight or fat in the body as this tends to make the condition severe. It is the duty of stakeholders in health sectors to keep the adult folk aware of the implication of over-weight by providing them with accurate, timely and up to date information regarding this health condition. It is also the duty of health personnel to warn and educate adults who are more prone to high blood pressure, about the dangers of over-weight in the management of high blood pressure. This awareness is expected to affect the feeding habit of these people, since it has been observed that poor feeding (that is, poor combination of the classes of food, not necessarily the quantity) is one of the causes of over-weight (Sacks F.M, 2008).
There are several causes of the differences, including variations in the definitions of the disorders and the methods of diagnosis. Also, many reports are based on hospital populations, which may be influenced by the special nature of the health services and do not reflect the situation in the whole population of a defined geographical area. In Nigeria, it is estimated that 5-10% of pregnancies are complicated by hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (HDP) and it results in more admissions in the antenatal period than any other disorder (Myers et al., 2002). Hypertensive disorder in pregnancy is one of the leading cause of maternal mortality in this centre (Audu et al., 2002).
Therefore, in Edo State where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Knowledge and Perception of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension and its Management among Women Attending Antenatal Care.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation reveals the Challenges of Knowledge and Perception of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension and its Management among Women Attending Antenatal Care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City research work:
- A lot of patients have died as a result of Hypertension.
- High blood pressure can cause hardening and thickening of the arteries (atherosclerosis), which can lead to a heart attack, stroke or other complications.
- Heart failure: To pump blood against the higher pressure in your vessels, the heart has to work harder. This causes the walls of the heart's pumping chamber to thicken (left ventricular hypertrophy). Eventually, the thickened muscle may have a hard time pumping enough blood to meet your body's needs, which can lead to heart failure.
- Hypertension among pregnant women can affect the blood vessels. It may decrease blood flow in liver, kidneys, brain, uterus, and placenta in pregnant women.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to examine the Knowledge and Perception of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension and its Management among Women Attending Antenatal Care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To examine the effect of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City;
- To examine the perception of women attending antenatal care towards the management of pregnancy induced hypertension;
- To identify the challenges of treating hypertension among pregnant women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City;
- To examine the level of pregnancy induced hypertension awareness among women attending antenatal care; and
- To determine the extent and direction of the relationship between the socio-demographic variables and pregnancy induced hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- What is the effect of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City?
- What are the challenges of treating hypertension among pregnant women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City?
- What is the extent and direction of the relationship between the socio-demographic variables and pregnancy induced hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City?
- What is the level of pregnancy induced hypertension awareness among women attending antenatal care?
- What is the perception of women attending antenatal care towards the management of pregnancy induced hypertension?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
Hypothesis One
- H0: There is no relationship between the socio-demographic variables and pregnancy induced hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City
- H1: There is relationship between the socio-demographic variables and pregnancy induced hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City
Hypothesis Two
- H0: There is no significant effect of pregnancy induced hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City
- H1: There is significant effect of pregnancy induced hypertension among Women attending antenatal care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City
1.7 Significance of Study
The relevance of this research work will help individuals to predict their blood pressure given their weight and will equally help them to know what to do when their blood pressure (Hypertension) rises. This study will be of immense benefit to researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.8 Scope of Study
The scope of the research is focused on the Knowledge and Perception of Pregnancy Induced Hypertension and its Management among Women Attending Antenatal Care in St Philomena’s Hospital Benin City.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Establishment Policies: Establishment policies posed a serious limitation as most staffs are not ready to release information needed for this project work. There were lots of information needed from the staffs of this establishment to enhance the study which took them time to release or they did not release at all for security purposes, hence the scope was reduced.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
