Background: To study the Socio-demographic profiles and mode of clinical presentations of with uterine rupture in pregnancy in Calabar, Nigeria.
Method: Medical records of 67 patients managed for ruptured gravid uterus over 10 years in Maternity section of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital Calabar, Nigeria were reviewed.
Results: An incidence of 1 in 213 of all deliveries during the period was established. Majority (49.2%) were aged between 31 to 40 years and 43.3% had no formal education. Unemployed patients were 29.9%, 42.3% did not book for antenatal care while 32.8% were attended to by traditional birth attendants (TBA) and in the churches. The Commonest clinical presentations were fetal heart rate abnormalities (52.2%) and maternal collapse (46.3%). Majority (50.7%) resulted from neglected obstructed labour.
Conclusion: Ruptured uterus is a problem of ignorance among women of low socioeconomic group with most of them having unskilled and substandard care during pregnancy and delivery. Improvement in Socio-economic conditions and modification of some harmful cultural practices against women generally will reduce the problem of rupture uterus in our society.