title: prenatal care utilization and its correlates in fars province 2000-2010

background: prenatal care consists of a series of clinical visits and services offered to pregnant women throughout the ante-partum period. despite advances in the extent of prenatal care use in iran, some women still avoid using these services. it is therefore very important to investigate the prevalence of prenatal care use, and to identifythe factorsassociated with it. objective: this study analyzes prenatal care use in fars provincebetween 2000 and 2010,identifying the associations between women’s demographic and socio-economic characteristics and prenatal care use. data and method: the study is quantitative and based on secondary data drawn from idhs 2000 and midhs 2010. the sample wasmade up of 765 individuals from fars province. the data were weighted to reflect the characteristics of the rural-urban population. the dependent variable was prenatal care use. statistical analyses were carried out using spss-18. in the inferential analysis, bivariate and multivariate logistic regressionswere applied. results: this study indicates that both the quantity and quality of prenatal care increased during 2000–2010. obstetricians and gynecologistsbecame the primary reference point for women accessinghealthcare during this period. our study indicates that, in the final analytical model, educational attainment, place of residence, the sanitary and health status of households, and knowledge of family planning were significantly related to prenatal care. conclusion: women who do not access prenatal care are mainly from families with low socio-economic status. thus socially vulnerable groups receive deficient prenatal care, indicating the need for government investment and planning in a comprehensive insurance system.