Antenatal care in Mozambique: Number of visits and gestational age at the beginning of antenatal care*

OBJECTIVE: 1)to assess the gestational age at the beginning of antenatal care and its covariates; 2)to assess the number of antenatal visits and its covariates; and 3)to identify the reasons for the late initiation of antenatal care and for attending less than four visits among postpartum women living in Nampula, Mozambique. METHOD: cross-sectional study conducted with 393 mothers who answered a structured instrument in face-to-face interviews. Logistic regression was used to analyze the covariates of having initiated antenatal care up to the 16(th)gestational week, having attended four or more antenatal visits, and reporting both situations simultaneously. RESULTS: all postpartum women underwent antenatal care, but only 39.9% started it until the 16(th)gestational week, 49.1% attended four or more visits, and 34.1% reported both events. Having concluded high school (ORadj=1.99; 95%CI=1.19-3.31) or college (ORadj=3.87; 95%CI=1.47-10.18) were aspects associated with reporting both situations. The reasons for the late initiation of antenatal care and attending less than four visits were as follows: not finding it important to attend several visits, not having easy access to the health facility, not being aware about pregnancy, and not having a companion for the visits. CONCLUSION: the gestational age at the beginning of antenatal care and the number of antenatal visits are lower than the current recommendations in the country.