Fertility characteristics and use of contraceptives in Park Health Centre Region

The service area of Public Health Department of Ankara, University Medical School is the catchment area of Park Education Health Centre, in which regular family planning services have been provided for a long period of time. The purpose of this study was to determine the fertility characteristics, knowledge, attitude and practice regarding contraceptive methods in the region and to reevaluate the services. A cross-sectional study was carried out by filling a questionnaire in house to house visits to 359 women who were chosen by random sampling from 3500 between 15-49 years old living in the region. Demographic characteristics, number of pregnancies, deliveries and abortions were obtained.Percentage of contraceptive methods were determined and their relations with factors like age and educational level were investigated. The average number of pregnancies was 3.83, of live births was 2.53 and of abortions was 1.29. The number of pregnancies and births increased with age and decreased with higher educational level. A total of 80.7% of women were using one contraceptive method, while 11.9% did not need to use a method [sterility, menopause, etc.] and 7.4% were not using any method.Among the users 61. 4% preferred modern methods. Of all the methods used, the most frequent method was IUD and the second was coitus interruptus. The ratio of non-users and traditional method users increased with age and low educational level. Knowledge and attitude of the women regarding contraceptives were also investigated. It was seen that their knowledge on adverse effects and usage of oral contraceptives in particular was not sufficient. It was concluded to emphasize one-to-one counseling practices besides public training and to focus on women of older age and lower education as a priority risk group in order to increase the use of modern methods and maintain appropriate usage

Epidemiological evaluation and follow-up of burns in Ankara Numune Hospital, Turkey

Burns constitute a significant proportion of accidents and cause severe results in our country, particularly in the childhood period. In addition to the preventive measures, an appropriate approach is required in burns in terms of treatment. Ankara Numune Hospital has a burn unit, which most of the cases in Ankara attend. In this study, the epidemiological characteristics and follow-up results of all burn cases attending this hospital in a period of one year were evaluated. A total of 703 burn cases attended the Emergency Department of Ankara Numune Hospital. Data about age, sex, socio-demographic characteristics of the patient, place and time of burn, type of residence, and type of heating equipment were collected by a questionnaire. The characteristics of burns were determined by physical examination. Inpatients were followed until discharge and the results of treatment were examined. Among these 703 cases, most of the burns were domestic and seen in 0-4 age group. Burns out of the house were more likely seen in men and increased with age. Most of the burns happened in autumn and winter and between 07:00-12:00 hours during the day. Hot liquid burns were most frequently seen while flame burns were the next most frequent. Type of burn was found significantly related to age, type of residence and type of heating equipment. Any application before attending the hospital and the duration between accident and attendance were also investigated because of the effect on prognosis. As for localization, burns of upper extremities were most frequently seen and 83.5% of all cases were second degree burns. Mortality rate was 7.7% and it was related with the degree and extent of the burn. All results were evaluated and recommendations for preventive measures, community education and improvement of treatment institutions were made

Vaginal douching and related factors in women between 15-49 years old in the area of Prak Health Centre

Several epidemiologic studies showed that vaginal douching [VD] has an effect on the occurrence of ectopic pregnancy, Cervical cancer and especially pelvic inflammatory disease [PID], VD, which is commonly used in many countries, is also common in our country. However, there are no clear data on VD. In this study which included married women between 15 and 49 years in the area of Park Health Centre, the frequency of VD, properties of the method and afffecting factors were investigated. For this aim, between May and June 1995, 350 women selected by simple randomized sampling from 3077 women living in the mentioned area, were evaluated using a face to face questionnaire and gynecologic examination. Only 318 of them completed this study. Chi square test and multiple logistic regression analysis were used for statistical evaluation. According to our results, VD was applied in a high rate [63.2%] in the area and used frequently, using only water or water and soap as the method learnt from elder people such as mothers. In general, it is applied during showering, post-coital and postmenstrual for cleaning, religious beliefs or contraception. Advanced age, living in gettos, unemployment, marriage in early age were related factors as shown by using multiple logistic regression analysis. In these women, PID was also detected in a significantly high rate in the previous year