Online Health Information Needs of Pregnant Women in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Scoping Review

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Pregnant women in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) often face significant barriers in obtaining timely, accurate, and culturally appropriate health information, which can adversely affect pregnancy outcomes, maternal knowledge, and subsequently child health. The purpose of this research is to identify the online health information needs of pregnant women in LMICs. METHODS: This scoping review was conducted to identify the information needs of pregnant women in LMICs. Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, and Proquest databases were searched to identify related studies. After removing duplicates and screening, studies from a total of retrieved studies were selected for data extraction. Two independent reviewers were involved in screening, selecting, and extracting data, which were synthesized using thematic analysis. All of the studies had good methodological quality. RESULTS: After removing duplicates and screening, 11 qualitative and quantitative studies from a total of 3907 retrieved studies were selected for data extraction. In total, 48 items were identified as online health information needs of pregnant women in LMICs. The information needs of pregnant women were divided into four themes: nutrition, information about the fetus, information about the pregnancy, and maternal health and medication management. CONCLUSION: Pregnant women in LMICs have distinct online health information needs. Despite access to various information sources, there are still gaps in the availability and adequacy of culturally appropriate, reliable, and timely health information tailored to pregnant women's needs in these settings. The importance of improving access to high-quality online health information to support maternal and fetal well-being is evident, suggesting a need for health interventions and policies that address these specific informational gaps to leverage digital platforms effectively.