Timely initiation of breastfeeding and associated factors among mothers with vaginal and cesarean deliveries in public hospitals of Addis Ababa

Abstract Background WHO and UNICEF recommend breastfeeding to be initiated within the first hour of birth. It is possible to initiate breastfeeding within an hour of birth regardless of the method of delivery. Despite this, the practice of timely initiation of breastfeeding remains low in Ethiopia with both delivery modalities. Therefore, this study aims to compare timely initiation of breastfeeding and associated factors with cesarean and vaginal deliveries in public hospitals of Addis Ababa, 2021. Methods and materials: Comparative cross-sectional study was conducted from January 2021 to February 2021 in public hospitals of Addis Ababa. 322 mothers within three days of delivery at the postnatal ward of the respective public hospitals were selected. A multi-stage sampling method was employed with the final participants being recruited by systematic random sampling. Data was entered to Epi data Version 4.6 and analysis was performed by SPSS Version 26. A Binary and multivariate logistic regression statistical model was used. Adjusted odds ratio with 95% CI was computed to see the strength of association. Result Timely breastfeeding initiation was 79 (51.2%) and 123 (80%) for cesarean and vaginal deliveries. With a vaginal delivery, pre-lacteal feeding (AOR= 5.50, 95% CI:1.83-16.57) was significantly associated with timely initiation of breastfeeding. Multiparty (AOR= 2.14, 95% CI: 1.02-4.50), support from health care worker (AOR= 2.602, 95% CI: 1.16-5.82), and pre-lacteal feeding (AOR= 2.55, 95% CI: 1.13-5.75) were significantly associated with timely initiation of breastfeeding with cesarean delivery. Conclusion The rate of timely initiation of breastfeeding differs according to the mode of delivery. Cesarean delivery, as compared to vaginal delivery, was associated with a higher mean and median time for initiation of breastfeeding.