Knowledge, awareness and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases among women in urban slums
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20525/ijrbs.v11i4.1061Keywords:
Awareness; Knowledge: Married Women; Urban Slum: PreventionAbstract
Sexually Transmitted Diseases/ Infections (STDs/STIs) are a major public health problem and a leading cause of morbidity among women in developing countries like Bangladesh. According to WHO, 2006, STDs/STIs ranks second as a cause of healthy life loss among women in the reproductive age group. This research has been conducted on examining knowledge awareness and prevention of STDs among women. It was conducted in two selected slums (Kathalbagan’s Lakkhi slum and Moghbazar slum) of Dhaka city in Bangladesh. This study was conducted through quantitative research and convenience sampling techniques. A structured questionnaire was developed to collect data on knowledge awareness and prevention of STDs/STIs. The study shows that 68.3% of respondents have knowledge about STDs, in this research majority of respondents are not aware of risk factors associated with STDs. This study examines that, for building awareness, majority of respondents preferred “Radio and Television” as the most important media that can build awareness for STDs among slum women. Special counseling is mandatory for the victims, along with sex education. Awareness about healthy sexual behaviors, a hygienic lifestyle, and instruction about the correct use of male condoms should be promoted to reduce the risk of health complications and greatly reduce the spread of STDs not in Bangladesh but also in developing countries.
Downloads
References
Azim, T., Islam, M. N., Bogaerts, J., Mian, M. A. H., Sarker, M. S., Fattah, K. R.&, Mathan, V. I. (2000). Prevalence of HIV and syphilis among high-risk groups in Bangladesh. Aids, 14(2), 210. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/00002030-200001280-00022
Al-Batanony, M. (2016). Knowledge, Attitude and Practices about Sexually Transmitted Infections/Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STIs/STDs) among Married Employee Ladies in Qassim Province, KSA. International STD Research & Reviews, 4(1), 1–10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.9734/ISRR/2016/26067
Cash, K., Khan, S. I., Hashima-E-Nasreen, Bhuiya, A., Chowdhury, S., & Chowdhury, A. M. R. (2001). Telling Them Their Own Stories: Legitimizing sexual and reproductive health education in rural Bangladesh. Sex Education, 1(1), 43–57. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14681810120041715
Decker, M., Miller, E., Kapur, N., Gupta, J., Raj, A., & Silverman, J. (2007). Intimate partner violence and sexually transmitted disease symptoms in a national sample of married Bangladeshi women. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 100(1), 18–23. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgo.2007.06.045
Dudhgaonkar S and Jagdhani R. S. (2016). Assessment of awareness, perception and attitude about sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among medical undergraduates in tertiary care teaching institute of Vidarbha region in Maharashtra state; International Journal of Biomedical Research 2016; 7(7): 541-545.
Francesco D, Ciccarese G, Zangrillo F, Gasparini G, Cogorno L, Riva S, Javor S, Cozzani E, Broccolo F, Esposito S and Parodi A. (2016) A Survey of Current Knowledge on Sexually Transmitted Diseases and Sexual Behavior in Italian Adolescents; Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 13, 422. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph13040422
Farokhzadian, J., Shahrbabaki, P. M., & Mozaffari, N. (2014). Survey of Women’s Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Regarding Prevention of Common Genital Tract Infection. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 136, 381–384. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.05.344
Hossain, M., Islam, R., & Sarkar, A. S. R. (2017). Factors associated with awareness about syphilis and gonorrhoea among women in Bangladesh. F1000 Research, 6, 406. DOI: https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.10982.1
Hossain, M., Mani, K. K., Sidik, S. M., Shahar, H. K., & Islam, R. (2014). Knowledge and awareness about STDs among women in Bangladesh. BMC Public Health, 14(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-775
Hawkes, S., Morison, L., Foster, S., Gausia, K., Chakraborty, J., Weeling, R., & Mabey, D. (1999). Reproductive-tract infections in women in low-income, low-prevalence situations: assessment of syndromic management in Matlab, Bangladesh. The Lancet, 354(9192), 1776–1781 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(99)02463-0
Islam, S. S., Mou, S., & Bhuiya, F. (2015). Knowledge and perceptions of sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS, and reproductive health among female students in Dhaka, Bangladesh. International Journal of Advanced Medical and Health Research, 2(1), 9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/2349-4220.159118
Khan MA, Rahman M, Akhter P. (1997). Awareness of transmission and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases among rural women in Bangladesh: International Journal of STD AIDS, 8(11):688-96
Khan MA, Rahman M, Khanam PA, Barkat-e-Khuda, Kane TT, Ashraf A. (1997). Awareness of sexually transmitted disease among women and service providers in rural Bangladesh. Int J STD AIDS.8(11):688-96. https://doi.org/10.1258/0956462971919066. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1258/0956462971919066
Lawrence, J. S. S., & Fortenberry, J. D. (2007). Behavioral Interventions for STDs: Theoretical Models and Intervention Methods, Journal of Behavioral Interventions for Prevention and Control of Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 23–59 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-48740-3_2
Malkin JE. (2004), Epidemiology of genital Herpes Simplex Virus infection in developed countries. HERPES 2004; 11 (Suppl 1): 2A-23A.
Mayaud, P. (2004). Approaches to the control of sexually transmitted infections in developing countries: old problems and modern challenges. Sexually Transmitted Infections, 80(3), 174–182. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/sti.2002.004101
Rashid, S. F. (2011). Human rights and reproductive health: political realities and pragmatic choices for married adolescent women living in urban slums, Bangladesh. BMC International Health and Human Rights, 11(S3). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-698X-11-S3-S3
Rianon, N., Selwyn, B., Shahidullah, S. M., Swint, J. M., Franzini, L., & Rasu, R. (2009). Cost of health education to increase STD awareness in female garment workers in Bangladesh. International Electronic Journal of Health Education, 12. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A331688290/HRCA?u=anon~c4edb48c&sid=googleScholar&xid=410c0340
Sabin, K. M., Rahman, M., Hawkes, S., Ahsan, K., Begum, L., Black, R. E., & Baqui, A. H. (2003). Sexually transmitted infections prevalence rates in slum communities of Dhaka, Bangladesh. International Journal of STD & AIDS, 14(9), 614–621 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1258/095646203322301077
Samkange-Zeeb, F. N., Spallek, L., & Zeeb, H. (2011). Awareness and knowledge of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among school-going adolescents in Europe: a systematic review of published literature. BMC Public Health, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-11-727 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-11-727
Shingade, P. P., Kazi, Y., & LH, M. (2016). Treatment seeking behavior for sexually transmitted infections/reproductive tract infections among married women in urban slums of Mumbai, India. South East Asia Journal of Public Health, 5(2), 65–70. https://doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v5i2.28315. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v5i2.28315
U.S.A.I.D. (in press). Demographic and Health Surveys Program (DHS), USAID 2011–2012. Demographic and Health Surveys Program (DHS).
WHO, STIs. (2015) Sexually Transmitted Infections (20 January 2015).
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Rafia Akter
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
For all articles published in IJRBS, copyright is retained by the authors. Articles are licensed under an open access Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, meaning that anyone may download and read the paper for free. In addition, the article may be reused and quoted provided that the original published version is cited. These conditions allow for maximum use and exposure of the work, while ensuring that the authors receive proper credit.
