Women & Health最新文献

Unmet need for family planning (FP) in Somalia is a critical public health challenge, contributing to unintended pregnancies and maternal mortality. This study investigates factors associated with unmet FP need among married women, using data from the 2020 SDHS. We analyzed data from 1,074 married women (15-49 years), categorizing unmet FP need into spacing, limiting, and met need. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the associations between sociodemographic factors and these categories, reporting Adjusted Odds Ratios (AORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Older women had significantly lower odds of unmet need for limiting compared to younger women (e.g. AOR 0.04 for 45-49 age group vs. 15-19). Conversely, the desire for more children strongly predicted unmet need for limiting. Women desiring children after two years (AOR 19.75), those undecided (AOR 23.27), and those wanting no more children (AOR 1.76) all showed significantly higher odds of unmet need for limiting compared to those desiring children within two years. The high unmet FP need among married Somali women is primarily linked to desires for delayed or limited childbearing. This underscores the need for culturally sensitive interventions that prioritize women's reproductive intentions and further research to identify specific barriers.

This study compared the pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD) symptoms, knowledge level and quality of life inwomen with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and healthy. The study included 30 SSc and 30 healthy women. The presence and severity of PFD symptoms were evaluated using the Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory-20 (PFDI-20) (Subscales: Pelvic Organ Prolapse Distress Inventory-6 (POPDI-6), Colorectal-Anal Distress Inventory-8 (CRADI-8), and Urinary Distress Inventory-6 (UDI-6)). The impact of PFD on women's lives was evaluated using the Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire-7 (PFIQ-7). Participants' knowledge levels were assessed using the Prolapse and Incontinence Knowledge Questionnaire (PIKQ) and the Anal Incontinence Knowledge Questionnaire (AIKQ). The SSc group scored significantly higher than controls across all measures: PFIQ-7, POPDI-6, CRADI-8, UDI-6, and PFDI-20 (p < .005). SSc group also knew less about PFD treatment and management strategies compared to controls (p < .05). In women with SSc, knowledge levels about the pelvic floor were lower and PFD severity was higher than in healthy women. Integrating PFD education into routine rehabilitation for women with scleroderma may help improve quality of life.

Endometriosis has been linked to several systemic complications, including cardiovascular disease (CVD), atrial fibrillation (AF), heart failure (HF), hypertension, stroke, and ischemic stroke. The potential causal relationship between endometriosis and these diseases remains poorly understood. This Mendelian randomization (MR) study employed two-sample analyses to explore the associations between endometriosis and disease outcomes using data from large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS). The primary analysis method was the inverse variance weighted (IVW) method, which was supplemented by weighted median, weighted mode, and MR Egger methods. Our primary analysis revealed no significant causal association between endometriosis and cardiovascular or cerebrovascular diseases, including CVD, HF, stroke, ischemic stroke, and hypertension. Despite initial indications of a possible genetic link between endometriosis and AF (OR = 132.357; 95 percent CI: 1.126 -15,551.291; p = .045), this association was not robust. Sensitivity tests, including the "leave-one-out" analysis, showed the results to be unstable, and MR-weighted median analyses confirmed the lack of consistency in these findings. This MR study does not support a causal role of endometriosis in major cardiovascular or cerebrovascular diseases. The unstable association with AF may reflect residual pleiotropy or limited power, underscoring the need for validation in larger, diverse cohorts.

The United States Food and Drug Administration approved human papillomavirus (HPV) self-collection in a healthcare setting as a cervical cancer screening approach in May 2024. It is therefore important to examine women's acceptability of this approach. We conducted an online survey in September 2024 with a national sample of women ages 45-65 from the United States (n = 296). Logistic regression identified correlates of participants' willingness to use HPV self-collection in a healthcare setting. Overall, 64.4 percent of participants were willing to use HPV self-collection in a healthcare setting if it was free or covered by insurance, while 23.9 percent were willing if it cost $150 out of pocket. Participants were more willing to use HPV self-collection for free if they had some form of health insurance (odds ratio [OR] = 3.49, 95 percent confidence interval [CI]: 1.25-9.71), had a routine medical checkup within the last year (OR = 3.50, 95 percent CI: 1.42-8.62), or reported a higher perceived likelihood of cervical cancer (OR = 1.93, 95 percent CI: 1.18-3.17). In summary, most women are willing to use HPV self-collection in a healthcare setting if it is free or covered by health insurance. Our findings can guide future programs that include HPV self-collection in a healthcare setting to increase cervical cancer screening.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a deeply ingrained cultural practice in many regions of sub-Saharan Africa, involving the partial or complete removal of external genitalia for non-medical purposes. It is estimated that millions of women are affected by this. Despite global attempts to eradicate this behavior, it continues to be prevalent, causing severe psychological and social repercussions for those affected. Noteworthy effects encompass anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), chronic pain, infections, and complications related to childbirth. The purpose of this scoping review, conducted against this background, was to comprehensively examine and synthesize the available research on the psychosocial effects of FGM in sub-Saharan Africa, while also identifying key themes and gaps in the literature. To incorporate the latest research, the review encompassed a ten-year period from 2014 to 2024. The study adopted the Arksey and O'Malley methodology and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines for comprehensive analysis and reporting. Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms, Boolean keywords, and truncations were utilized to search relevant studies in selected databases. The consulted databases included Academic Search Ultimate, APA PsycArticles, APA PsycInfo, Global Health, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, MEDLINE, and Taylor and Francis Online. The identified studies were crosschecked by conducting a manual search on Google Scholar and Google. The results showed that victims of FGM experience numerous negative psychosocial consequences. Community-based education programs, support groups for victims, increased resources, sensitively trained healthcare professionals, and strict enforcement of FGM laws are all essential in addressing this conundrum. Conducting longitudinal studies is suggested to track victims' long-term psychosocial effects.

Fear of childbirth is a common concern among primiparous women and may negatively affect their confidence and birth preferences. This randomized controlled trial examined the effects of positive birth story videos on childbirth fear, self-efficacy, and birth beliefs. A total of 120 primiparous women between 24 and 28 weeks of gestation were randomly assigned to an intervention group (n = 60), which attended four weekly digital storytelling workshops featuring positive birth videos, or a control group (n = 60), which received routine antenatal education. Measures were taken at baseline, four weeks post-intervention, and within 24 hours postpartum. At baseline, both groups had similar scores in fear of childbirth, childbirth self-efficacy, and birth beliefs (p > .05). After the intervention, the intervention group had significantly lower mean scores for fear of childbirth (18.17 ± 3.51) compared to the control group (55.12 ± 7.23). Their beliefs in a medicalized birth process were also lower (22.12 ± 4.19 vs. 24.87 ± 2.91), while childbirth self-efficacy (288.77 ± 13.49 vs. 248.13 ± 15.30) and beliefs in a natural birth process (24.73 ± 3.46 vs. 18.27 ± 2.73) were significantly higher (p < .001 for all). These findings suggest that integrating digital storytelling with positive birth narratives into antenatal education may effectively reduce fear of childbirth and enhance women's self-efficacy and preference for physiological birth.

This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the efficacy of zinc supplementation for alleviating premenstrual symptoms (PMS) in women of reproductive age. A literature search was conducted across six electronic databases. Five randomized controlled trials were included in the qualitative synthesis and four were eligible for meta-analysis. All studies had some concerns for risk of bias. The certainty of the evidence was evaluated using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation framework. Zinc supplementation reduced total PMS scores and emotional symptoms with moderate certainty of evidence, while physical symptoms were supported by low certainty of evidence. Meta-analyses revealed that zinc supplementation significantly reduced total PMS scores (Hedges's g =  -0.384), emotional symptoms (g =  -0.347), and physical symptoms (g =  -0.512), all favoring the intervention. Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of results for the total and emotional domains, but the effect sizes for physical symptoms were moderately influenced by individual studies. In conclusion, zinc supplementation shows promise as a non-pharmacological intervention for reducing PMS. However, its generalizability is limited by the small number of trials and methodological heterogeneity. Further, multicenter RCTs with standardized protocols are warranted to establish clinical utility and explore dose - response relationships.

This study analyzes the media coverage of HPV vaccines in Taiwan from 2005 to 2018, with a focus on adherence to World Health Organization (WHO) media guidelines and the influence of election cycles on reporting patterns. A content analysis of 911 articles from four major newspapers revealed peaks in 2008, 2014, and 2018 election years, coinciding with vaccines policy rollouts. Most articles (78 percent) appeared in national news sections, with medical professionals cited in 36.3 percent of cases. Coverage primarily emphasized vaccine policy (36.3 percent) and health education (36.4 percent), with 83 percent of articles portraying HPV vaccination positively and 88 percent explicitly endorsing it. However, only 42 percent adhered to WHO's media communication guidelines, and headlines often misaligned with article content. These findings highlight the media's advocacy role during key political and public health events, while underscoring the need for improved journalistic practices to ensure accurate, guideline-consistent vaccine communication.

Endometriosis affects approximately 10 percent of women of reproductive age. Although physical activity has shown beneficial effects for managing endometriosis-related symptoms, women with this condition often engage in lower levels of activity. This study aimed to assess physical activity levels and identify perceived barriers to exercise among women diagnosed with endometriosis. A cross-sectional study was conducted using online questionnaires distributed through endometriosis associations in Spain. Participants (n = 154, mean age: 39 ± 7 years) completed the Barriers to Being Active Quiz (BBAQ) and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF). Sociodemographic and clinical data were also collected to explore potential associations between symptoms and activity patterns. The most prevalent barriers were lack of energy (68.2 percent) and lack of willpower (50.0 percent). Lack of energy was significantly associated with pain, dysmenorrhea, fatigue, and depression, and emerged as the primary limiting factor. Despite reporting moderate-to-high levels of physical activity, as defined by IPAQ criteria - moderate (≥600 MET-min/week) or high (≥1,500 MET-min/week with vigorous activity ≥ 3 days/week, or ≥ 3,000 MET-min/week with activity on ≥ 7 days/week) - symptoms such as pain (79.2 percent) and fatigue (79.9 percent) remained prevalent. Psychological and physical symptoms, especially fatigue and depression, significantly influence exercise participation among women with endometriosis. These findings underscore the need for tailored strategies to address perceived barriers and promote sustained physical activity in this population. Integrating psychological support and individualized exercise guidance, and pain management interventions, may enhance adherence and long-term outcomes.