Awareness and Utilization of Pregnancy Related Mobile Applications among Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Clinic at Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Pregnancy apps are especially popular among expectant mothers due to their ease of access, user-centered designs, and ability to deliver personalized health information. Pregnancy mobile applications (apps) offer a promising avenue to enhance maternal health education and antenatal care engagement, yet their adoption in low-resource settings remains poorly understood. Aim: This study assessed the awareness and utilization of these apps among pregnant women in a Nigerian tertiary hospital. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among 410 pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic at Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, Abia State. Data were collected using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire. Analysis involved descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. Results: A majority of respondents (61.0%) were aware of pregnancy apps, primarily through social media (32.3%). However, utilization was low: only 41.5% of informed women had ever used an app, and merely 12.2% were current users. Key perceived benefits included learning about pregnancy (25.5%) and remembering appointments (19.1%). Major barriers to use were high data cost (20.3%) and a preference for information from healthcare providers (20.3%). Socio-demographic factors showed no significant association with app awareness. Occupation was significantly associated with ever-use (p=0.014), but no factor predicted current use, indicating universal challenges with sustained engagement. Conclusion: While awareness of pregnancy apps is relatively high, a significant gap exists between awareness and sustained utilization, driven by economic, trust-related, and design-related barriers. To realize their potential, interventions must move beyond awareness campaigns to address these specific barriers through provider integration, data cost mitigation, and the development of contextually relevant, low-cost applications.