Comparison of demographic data of single and married women
attending a private clinic in Turkey for induced abortion
M. Sezik1, H. Toyran
Sezik2, O. Ozkaya1, O. Buyukkaytan2
1Suleyman Demirel University Faculty of
Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Isparta, Turkey, 2Ozel
Isparta Kadin Sagligi Merkezi, Isparta, Turkey
Objective Isparta province is
located in southwestern Turkey with approximately 500,000 inhabitants.
Politically, conservatives have traditionally been dominant in the district. A
local university educating over 20,000 students was founded in 1990s. Our aim
was to evaluate the characteristics of single (never married) women undergoing
induced abortions in a private clinic located in Isparta.
Design and methods
Medical records of 253 consecutive women requiring an induced abortion
throughout a 12-month period were reviewed. The variables recorded and analyzed
were maternal age, gestational age, graviditiy, number of previous spontaneous
and induced abortions, marital status, employment, educational status, area of
accommodation, and contraceptive history. Student’s t-test and chi-square test
were used for comparisons across single and married groups of women. Data were
given as mean ± standard deviations.
Results There were 199 (78.7%) married,
48 (19%) single (never-married), and 6 (2.3%) divorced women. Mean maternal age
(32.1±6.5 years versus 21.9±3.5 years; p<0.0001), gravidity (3.8±1.9 versus 1.1±0.3; p<0.0001), and number of previous induced abortions (0.6±1.1 versus 0.1±0.3; p<0.0001) were higher in married women compared to single women. Married women presented at an earlier gestational age (6.2±1.3 weeks versus 6.9±1.5 weeks; p=0.012). About 80% (n=39) of the single women (compared to 57%, n=114) were living in the urban area (p=0.04). Most of the (67.3%, n=134) married women were housewives, whereas students comprised 58% (n=28) of the single women (versus 14% of the married women; p<0.0001). The percentages of teachers (4.8% and 4.5%) and nurses (4.8% and 5.5%) were similar across the groups. Over 80% (n=40) of the single women were not using any contraceptive methods versus 33.2% (n=66) nonusers in the married group (p<0.0001). None of the single women were on oral contraceptives or using intrauterine device. The condom usage was also less common (4.2% compared to 15.5%; p<0.05) in single women.
Conclusions In the defined region of Turkey, single women requesting
induced abortions were frequently university students living in the urban area
and presented at later gestation compared to their married counterparts. Lack of
contraceptive usage was common in unmarried women. Our data indicate urgent need
for establishing contraception education programs in Turkey among unmarried
women including university students.