REPRODUCTIVE TRACT INFECTIONS AMONG MARRIED WOMEN IN RURAL AREA OF HARYANA

BACKGROUND Reproductive tract infections are endemic in developing countries and entail a heavy toll on women. If untreated reproductive tract infections can lead to adverse health outcomes such as infertility, ectopic pregnancy and increased vulnerability to transmission of HIV. OBJECTIVE To assess the magnitude of problem of Reproductive Tract Infections and its socio-demographic correlates among married females in reproductive age group (15-44 years) in rural area of Haryana. STUDY DESIGN Cross-sectional. PARTICIPANTS 500 married females in reproductive age group (15-44 yrs). METHODOLOGY The primary tool in this study was predesigned and pretested questionnaire for recording of individual information. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS Percentages and Chi-square. RESULT Out of 500 women interviewed 228 of them were found to be suffering from Reproductive Tract Infections (RTIs) giving a prevalence of 45.6%. Majority of study population belonged to age group of 25-29 years and the prevalence of RTI was maximum (63.7%) in the same age group. The prevalence of RTI was significantly higher (56.2%) in the women belonging to joint families, in women (83.3%) who were married before 18 years of age, those who were using dirty clothes during menstruation (53.8%) and in women who adopted IUD's as a means of family planning method (38.8%). The prevalence of RTI was statistically associated with personal hygiene as the prevalence of RTI was 54.9%, 46.0% and 36.0% in women having poor, fair and good personal hygiene respectively. CONCLUSION Married women in rural Indian community have a high prevalence of RTIs.