Community based study of reproductive tract infections among ever married women of reproductive age in a rural area of Haryana, India.

A community based study was carried out to estimate the load of reproductive tract infections (RTIs) among ever married rural women aged 15-44 years and utilisation of a mobile village based treatment facility by them, during 1997. Complete household survey was done in 10 randomly selected villages of Mahindergarh district in Haryana, India. A total of 2325 women were interviewed by auxiliary nurse midwives and were invited for medical examination in a health camp set-up in their village. Sixty-one percent (1415/2325) women reported symptoms of RTIs. Only 35% (812/2325) had their per-speculum examination done. Out of those examined, 32% (263/812) had vaginitis, 21% (175/812) had cervicits, and 19% (156/812) had pelvic inflammatory disease. Vaginal smear of those having discharge revealed that 48% (231/476) had bacterial vaginosis, 0.8% (4/476) had fungal infection 9% (44/496) had trichomonal infection and none was found to be having gonococcal infection. Tests for chlamydial infection could not be performed as the cost was not affordable. Eighty-nine percent of women who reported symptoms of RTIs had not consulted anyone for their problem prior to our village based camp. Only 42% symptomatic and 24% asymptomatics availed the services even in the village based camps. Study revealed high load of reproductive tract infections and low utilisation of treatment facility. In-depth studies are required to understand for high RTI morbidity load and low treatment seeking rate so as to design an appropriate RTI control programme.