Impact of Counseling to Child Bearing age Women for Prevention of Neural Tube Defects by Periconceptional Folic Acid Supplementation

Background: Childbearing woman needs to start the folic acid intake at least four weeks before conception and continue it throughout the first trimester of pregnancy to help with the prevention of neural tube defects (NTDs). Hence, counseling and awareness by health care professionals influence strongly in order to overcome these burdensome issues to the women and their families. Objectives: To determine the impact of counseling on childbearing age Women for Prevention of Neural Tube Defects by Periconceptional Folic Acid Supplementation in Pakistan. Methodology: A descriptive survey design was carried out to conduct this study in the Obstetrical Outpatient departments of local teaching Hospitals of Lahore. A total of 300 pregnant women were studied to see the impact of counseling of healthcare professionals regarding supplementation of folic acid in order to minimize the Neural Tube Defects. Nonprobability convenient sampling technique was used for the purpose. Data were collected by a self-administered questionnaire and was analyzed by SPSS version 20. Frequencies and percentages were calculated. Results: The results signified that a major fraction of pregnant women 101 (33.6%) used to visit the healthcare professionals after elapsing the critical phase of organogenesis. Although the main source of provision of health-related information was found the health care professionals, it was also observed that only a few of pregnant women used to visit them. Furthermore, health care professionals used to provide counseling for folic acid use in the first trimester of pregnancy, but regarding supplementation of folic acid before pregnancy, no evident authentic information was provided to women of childbearing age. Conclusion: Findings of the study suggested that the health care professionals need to provide awareness at all the levels of health care regarding periconceptional folic acid supplementation. In addition, women should visit the professionals in the early antenatal period as well as before conception