Background Income, education, work and access to prevention measures have been identified as socioeconomic aspects related to malaria. For groups at risk such as pregnant women these aspects are little known, particularly outside Africa. The objective of this study was to determine socioeconomic aspects of pregnant women associated to malaria in a Latinamerican region.

Methods A case-control study was conducted from April 2005 to December 2006 in unstable transmission malaria region. Case was pregnant who had positive thick blood smear for Plasmodium during antenatal care or delivery. Data were collected by physician using a structured questionnaire that enquired about education, employment and income, housing and basic services, social security and access to malaria prevention measures. Data were analysed using SPSS version 17.0.

Results 115 cases and 63 controls were interviewed. Income <1 USD per day, <3 years of school, marital status single, single-parent family, without social security and no bed-nets in house were not associated to malaria in pregnancy in bivariate analysis (p>0.05). Pregnant women who had a farmer as a family member (OR 2.39, 95% CI 1.12 to 5.13), bodies of water around the house (OR 4.66, 95% CI 2.24 to 9.66), house roof made of palm tree leaves (OR 2.45, 95% CI 1.16 to 5.15) were more likely to have had malaria in multivariate analysis.

Conclusion In rural areas of Colombia where poverty is very common quality of house and access to basic public services explain better social differences of pregnant women that are related with malaria frequency.