Prevalence of self-reported symptoms of reproductive tract infections among recently pregnant women in Uttar Pradesh, India.

This study examines the prevalence of self-reported reproductive tract infections (RTIs) and treatment seeking among married, recently pregnant women in Uttar Pradesh state, India. Associations between RTI symptom reporting and background characteristics are examined in a population-based sample of 18,506 married women with a pregnancy in the 3 years prior to a 1995 statewide survey. Logistic regression analyses are used to assess the effects of sociodemographic covariates on the probability of reporting an RTI symptom. Nearly one out of four women reports experiencing at least one RTI symptom, with the most common symptoms being abnormal vaginal discharge and pain during urination. Reporting of RTI symptoms significantly increases if the woman's last pregnancy did not end in a live birth or if she has low economic status. Symptom reports also increase with age and decrease with parity. Only one-third of women reporting an RTI symptom sought treatment. The results indicate that survey interviews can be a cost-effective option for measuring the magnitude of RTI symptoms experienced and identifying sociodemographic influences. The findings suggest the need for improved RTI screening procedures and treatment at health facilities in this populous state of northern India.

Tetanus immunization and prenatal care in developing countries.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to estimate the proportion of women immunized against tetanus while attending prenatal care in the developing countries. METHOD: We computed the ratio of the percentage of births to women immunized against tetanus to the percentage of births to women with prenatal care (TP ratio). A TP ratio is lower than 100% if not every woman attending prenatal care is immunized. We used 1986-1992 Demographic and Health Surveys data from 38 countries. RESULTS: The mean TP ratios were 86% in Africa (n = 23), 79% in Asia (n = 6) and 60% in Latin American and the Caribbean (n = 9). The TP ratio was lower than 75% in 15 countries. Of these, four had a TP ratio lower than 50%. CONCLUSION: In many countries the number of pregnant women immunized against tetanus is lower than the number of women attending prenatal care, suggesting that prenatal services are missing opportunities to immunize attending women.