Knowledge and its factors associated towards the prevention of COVID-19 among pregnant women in Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 is caused by a single-stranded novel coronavirus that severely affects the respiratory system. The first human COVID-19 was reported in Wuhan city, China, in December 2019. Closing the gap and enhancing knowledge of pregnant women on COVID-19 prevention methods is crucial. However, the studies conducted in Ethiopia were inconsistent and non-conclusive. So, this review aimed to estimate the pooled knowledge prevalence on prevention of COVID 19 and factors associated among pregnant women in Ethiopia. METHODS: The data were extracted based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. We accessed studies through electronic web-based search from PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar. We did all statistical analyses using STATA version 14 software with a random-effects model. RESULTS: Seven studies with 2,594 participants were included in this systematic review and the overall estimated status of assessment of knowledge towards prevention of COVID-19 among pregnant women in Ethiopia was 52.27% (31.60, 68.94). According to the region subgroup analysis, the highest ad the lowest estimated status of the knowledge is 85.34% in Jimma town and 19.01 in Metu town respectively in the Oromia region. CONCLUSION: This systemic review showed that only half of the pregnant women in Ethiopia had good knowledge about COVID-19, and urban residence was significantly associated with knowledge towards the prevention of COVID-19 among pregnant women in this review. So, the responsible body better strengthen their awareness creation among rural residents and old-age pregnant women.