{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T08:25:31Z","timestamp":1786955131197,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":0,"publisher":"African Journals Online (AJOL)","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,1]],"date-time":"2026-01-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1767225600000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Rwanda J Med Health Sci"],"abstract":"<jats:p>BackgroundPreconception preparedness (PP) is important for improving maternal and neonatal health outcomes by promoting health optimization before conception. However, awareness remains limited in sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, evidence on premarital couples as a distinct population is scarce.AimTo assess the status, including level of knowledge and awareness (KA), of PP and identify associated factors among premarital couples in Rwanda.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted between May and July 2024 among 600 couples (n = 1,200) recruited from civil and religious marriage registration offices in 15 districts of Rwanda. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows version 29 (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY, USA). Descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, and multiple logistic regression were used to examine KA levels and associated factors. ResultsThe mean participant age was 29.5 years (SD, 5.5), 91.2% of participants demonstrated low PP KA, while only 8.8% had fair KA. At the couple level, 95.3% of them had both partners in the low KA category. Females were more likely than males to demonstrate fair KA (12.0% vs. 2.8%). Other factors associated with fair KA included female sex (AOR = 2.1; p = 0.007), secondary or higher education (AOR = 6.3; p = 0.004), and urban residence (AOR = 1.7; p = 0.009). Prior exposure to PP information was uncommon (3.3%) but was associated with higher odds of fair KA (AOR = 3.3; p = 0.002)ConclusionKnowledge and awareness of PP are low among the majority of premarital couples in Rwanda. Strengthening community-based educational interventions, integrating PP into premarital counseling, and expanding information dissemination are needed to improve preconception health literacy among couples preparing for parenthood.Rwanda J Med Health Sci 2026;9(2):281-298<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4314\/rjmhs.v9i2.3","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T07:56:08Z","timestamp":1786953368000},"page":"281-298","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["State of Knowledge and Awareness of Preconception Preparedness among Premarital Couples in Rwanda: A Quantitative Cross-Sectional Survey"],"prefix":"10.4314","volume":"9","author":[{"family":"Richard Nsengiyumva","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"family":"Thiery Claudien Uhawenimana","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"family":"Olive Bazirete","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"family":"Darius Gishoma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rwanda Biomedical Centre, Ministry of Health, Kigali, Rwanda"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"family":"Ing-Marie Carlsson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Health and Welfare, Halmstad University, Halmstad, Sweden"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"family":"HaEun Lee","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Systems, Population, and Leadership, School of Nursing, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States of America"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"family":"Jody Rae Lori","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Behavior and Biological Sciences, School of Nursing, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States of America"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"2895","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026]]},"container-title":["Rwanda Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ajol.info\/index.php\/rjmhs\/article\/download\/332435\/312447","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ajol.info\/index.php\/rjmhs\/article\/download\/332435\/312447","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,17]],"date-time":"2026-08-17T07:56:13Z","timestamp":1786953373000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.ajol.info\/index.php\/rjmhs\/article\/view\/332435"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026]]},"references-count":0,"journal-issue":{"issue":"2","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4314\/rjmhs.v9i2.3","relation":{},"ISSN":["2616-9827","2616-9819"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2616-9827","type":"electronic"},{"value":"2616-9819","type":"print"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026]]}}}