Reproductive Tract Infections in a Family Planning Population in Rural Bangladesh

In contrast to social, religious, and economic determinants of acceptance and sustained use of family planning in developing countries, perceived side effects resulting from reproductive tract infections can usually be ameliorated easily and expeditiously. This population-based study examines the magnitude and nature of morbidity due to reproductive tract infections among users of various contraceptive methods and among nonusers in a rural community in Bangladesh. Overall, 22 percent of the 2,929 women surveyed reported symptoms of reproductive tract infection. Of the 472 symptomatic women examined, 68 percent had clinical or laboratory evidence of infection. Users of intrauterine devices and tubectomy were each approximately four times as likely to report symptoms and seven times as likely to have examination-confirmed infection as nonusers. The epidemiology of reproductive tract infections in this population is addressed, and the findings are discussed in terms of their potential programmatic impact.