Peripartum traditional medicine use and surgical site infections: A prospective cohort of women delivering via cesarean section in rural Rwanda

Background Traditional medicine is commonly used in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Little is known about the use of traditional medicine among women undergoing cesarean section (c-section) and the association to surgical site infections (SSIs) in LMICs. In this study, we describe peripartum use of traditional medicines and the risk of SSIs among women delivering via c-section in rural Rwanda.Methods This prospective cohort study enrolled women who underwent c-section at Kirehe District Hospital in rural Rwanda between September 2019 and February 2020. We collected self-reported data regarding traditional medicine use before and during pregnancy and after discharge up to postoperative day (POD) 11. On POD 11 (+/- 3 days), the women returned to the hospital for a study follow-up visit. We used Fisher’s exact test to assess the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and traditional medicine use, and logistic regression to determine the association between traditional medicine use and SSI development while controlling for confounders. Results Of the 841 women enrolled in this study, 45 (5.4%) reported using traditional medicine to get pregnant. Nearly 39% used traditional medicine during pregnancy; the majority (96.9%) for a pregnancy-related reason. Only four women (0.5%) reported traditional medicine use between c-section and the POD 11 study visit. Of the 775 women who responded at all time-points, 341 (44.0%) reported using traditional medicine at some point during pregnancy or c-section recovery. No demographic characteristics were significantly associated with traditional medicine use (p>0.05), except for smoking (p=0.048) and alcohol consumption (p=0.010). Both traditional medicine use during pregnancy (p=0.04, aOR=2.0, 95% CI: 1.05, 3.85) and at any time point (p=0.04, aOR=2.0, 95% CI: 1.04, 3.83) were associated with development of SSI.Conclusions Traditional medicine use among c-section patients was high in the peripartum period, particularly during pregnancy, and was significantly associated with SSI. Knowing patterns of traditional medicine use during the peripartum period can help providers collaborate with traditional healers and give appropriate, culturally-sensitive pregnancy and postoperative care and counseling to patients.