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Introduction: The fact that adolescent people experience risky sexual behavior and have insufficient knowledge of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) indicates the need for SRH education. This study investigates the impact of peer‐educated SRH programs on the knowledge and behaviors of adolescents. Method: This study was conducted as a randomized controlled trial on 275 university students. The subjects were randomly assigned to the peer educators (n = 25), intervention (n = 125) and control (n = 125) groups using systematic random sampling. Peer educators provided face‐to‐face SRH education to the intervention group. The researcher provided the same education to the control group via the online conference method. SRH knowledge and behavior evaluated with scales before, after, and 3 and 6 months after the SRH education. The obtained data were analyzed using SPSS version 25 through statistical tests and analysis of covariance. Results: The female and male ratio of the participants was almost equal (49.4%, 50.6%). The mean age was found to be 20.42 ± 1.14 years. The mean scores of the students in the intervention group increased from 21.20 ± 0.14 to 35.20 ± 0.07 for sexual health knowledge questionnaire (SHKQ), and from 130.56 ± 0.55 to 147,90 ± 0,25 for reproductive health scale (RHS) after the education. Compared with the control group, these increases in the mean scores of SHKQ and RHS were found to be statistically significant. Conclusion: The findings show the important role of the SRH peer education method on the effect of transferring knowledge about sexual behaviors. Health and education policy‐makers are advised to implicate SRH peer education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to determine childhood trauma, the type of marriage, and level of self-esteem as correlates of domestic violence in married women in Turkey. The study sample consisted of 750 women aged 20 and over, selected through face to face interviews. Results More than half the women were exposed to domestic violence, which increases with factors like lower economic status, teenage and arranged marriages and a large number of children. According to the logistic regression model, arranged marriages, sexual problems and physical abuse during childhood lead to an increase in the occurrence of domestic violence, while this decreases as the partners age. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale scores were significantly lower in women subjected to domestic violence and this decrease became statistically significant as the level of abuse experienced during childhood increased. Keywords Arranged marriage * Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) * Domestic violence. Self-esteem * Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) * Women. Violence, Introduction Domestic violence is defined as physical, psychological, or sexual violence within a family (Krug et al. 2002) and is often perpetrated against women. Incidence of violence, including sexual and [...]

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine men's knowledge, attitudes and practice towards family planning in a province of north-eastern Turkey. Materials and Methods: This descriptive research was carried on 801 volunteers amongst men of reproductive age living in a city with a total population of 80,000 men. Data were gathered using a self-administered questionnaire that addressed men's roles, attitudes and behaviors towards family planning. Results: The most commonly used contraceptives were condom (36.8%) and withdrawal (27.3%) methods in single men. Married men reported relying more on female methods and they were more satisfied with the method they used. The idea of shared responsibility in family planning was more appreciated by single men. The role of family as a source of knowledge about family planning was low in both groups. Married men were more against vasectomy and condom while single men had more negative attitudes towards using hormone pills for men if produced in the future. Conclusion: Comprehensive projects are needed to improve male participation in family planning, especially in male dominant cultures. This must be seen as a golden key in the reproductive health programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine menopausal age, related factors and climacteric complaints in Turkish women. Method: A population based, cross-sectional study was executed using questionnaire in their home. A convenience sample of 321 was chosen, according to stratified sampling method who live in Istanbul rural area and aged 45-64 years. Women who had surgical menopause were excluded. Main Outcome Measures: Natural menopause age, prevalence of climacteric complaints and attitudes toward menopause. Statistical analysis: Climacteric Complaint Tool (CCT) was developed by researcher and validity and reliability of CCT was tested. Factor analysis was used to test construct validity. Internal consistency of the CCT was tested by use of Cronbach's Alpha (Alpha= .86), Itemtotal item correlation ranged from .35 to .84 Results: The most prevalent climacteric complaints were aching muscle and joints (75.7%), irritability (74.5%), hot flushesflashes (72.9%), difficulty in sleeping (68.8%), feeling tired (53.6%), feeling depressed (49.8%) and loss of sexual desire (47.4%) and didn't found to be related with menopausal age and attitudes toward menopause. Conclusions: The median age of menopause in Turkish women is lower than Caucasian. Although Turkish women had many complaints, they didn't apply for a medical care to relief them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine menopausal age, related factors and climacteric complaints in Turkish women. Method: A population based, cross-sectional study was executed using questionnaire in their home. A convenience sample of 321 was chosen, according to stratified sampling method who live in Istanbul rural area and aged 45-64 years. Women who had surgical menopause were excluded. Main Outcome Measures: Natural menopause age, prevalence of climacteric complaints and attitudes toward menopause. Statistical analysis: Climacteric Complaint Tool (CCT) was developed by researcher and validity and reliability of CCT was tested. Factor analysis was used to test construct validity. Internal consistency of the CCT was tested by use of Cronbach's Alpha (Alpha= .86), Itemtotal item correlation ranged from .35 to .84 Results: The most prevalent climacteric complaints were aching muscle and joints (75.7%), irritability (74.5%), hot flushesflashes (72.9%), difficulty in sleeping (68.8%), feeling tired (53.6%), feeling depressed (49.8%) and loss of sexual desire (47.4%) and didn't found to be related with menopausal age and attitudes toward menopause. Conclusions: The median age of menopause in Turkish women is lower than Caucasian. Although Turkish women had many complaints, they didn't apply for a medical care to relief them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this study was to analyze studies in Turkey about self-breast examination and produce conclusive, reliable and detailed basis for future studies., Methods: Studies performed between 2000 and 2009 (until the end of September) were retrieved from databases using breast cancer, breast examination, breast cancer screening and risk factors as key words. Fifty-nine studies were identified and 18 of them (15 journal articles and three theses) were used for the meta-analysis t., Results: Married women and women with a family history of breast cancer were found to perform self-breast examination more frequently than single women and women without a family history of breast cancer, respectively (OR=1.02 %CI 0.82-1.63; OR=1.16 %CI 0.82-1.63). According to the health belief model scales, women performing self-breast examination were determined to have 1.7 times higher susceptibility (OR=1.70), 1.34 times higher seriousness perception (OR=1.34), 3.32 times higher health motivation (OR=3.32), 5.21 times more self-efficacy/confidence (OR=5.21) and 2.56 times higher self-breast examination benefit perception (OR=2.56)., Conclusion: Nursing care models caused an increase in self-breast examination by women, and thus, it may be useful to organize and evaluate such health-related programs and consider women health perceptions.

Objective: This study aims to determine the rates of contraceptive discontinuation and usage failure and to examine their relation with termination of pregnancy., Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive (cross-sectional) type of study. The study population was chosen among women treated at a state hospital in Karaman City, located in the southern part of Turkey. A total of 695 women were interviewed for the present study. Data were collected using a face-to-face interview technique with the questionnaire developed by the researchers. Chi-square test was applied as the significance test., Results: While 44.3% and 23.7% of the women used medical and traditional methods of contraception, respectively, 32.0% did not use any method at all. Sixty percentage of the unintended pregnancies were terminated. Unintended pregnancy rate due to use of the withdrawal method was significantly high (p < 0.000). For the reasons of women's discontinuation of family planning methods, it was observed that both usage failure and unintended pregnancy were among the top reasons for the discontinuation of medical methods; discontinuation of the withdrawal method was due to unintended pregnancies., Conclusions: Withdrawal users have the highest unintended pregnancy rates. Most of these unintended/unplanned pregnancies are terminated. To increase the rate of use of medical contraceptive methods, users should be provided with adequate and high-quality consultancy services and evaluation of the applicant should be in accordance with the WHO criteria.

Objective: This study was conducted for the purpose of determining the prevalence of depression in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women and the factors that influence the development of depression., Methods: A community-based sample of 685 women aged 45 to 59 years who were living in Malatya was recruited in this cross-sectional study. An information form that included questions on descriptive characteristics and lifestyle variables of cases, the Menopause-Specific Quality of Life Questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory were administered to each woman in the sample. The data were collected through personal interviews with women at their home between February and May 2008., Results: The mean age of the respondents was 50.66 (4.15) years. The prevalence of depression symptoms among the perimenopausal and postmenopausal women was 41.8%. Of all women, 23.2% were premenopausal and 56.9% were postmenopausal. The logistic regression analysis revealed that depression symptom development was 1.8 times higher in the perimenopausal-postmenopausal period than in the premenopausal period, 3.6 times higher among those with an event history affecting life in a negative way than among those without, and 2.0 times higher among those with a body mass index of 25 kg/m or higher than among those with a body mass index of less than 25 kg/m., Conclusions: There is a high level of prevalence of depression symptoms in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women.