Search results for: Middle-aged women

Authors: Sudeshna Sengupta

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Women’s work lives weave a complex fabric of myriad work relations and complex structures. Lives, when seen from the lens of work, is a saga of conjugated oppression by intertwined structures that are vertically and horizontally interwoven in a very complex manner. Women interact with multiple institutions through their work. The interactions and interplay of institutions shape their organization of work. They intersperse productive work with reproductive work, unpaid economic activities with unpaid care work, and all kinds of activities with leisure and self-care. The proposed paper intends to understand how women working as home-based workers in the National Capital Region (NCR) of India are organizing their everyday work, and how the organization of work is influenced by the interplay of structures. Situating itself in a multidisciplinary theoretical framework, this paper brings out how the gendering of work is playing out in the political, economic and social domain and shaping the work-life within the family, and in the paid workspace. The paper will use a primary data source, which is qualitative in nature. It will comprise 15 qualitative interviews of women home-based workers from the National Capital Region. The research uses a life history approach. The sampling was purposive using snowballing as a method. The dataset is part of the primary data (qualitative) collected for the ongoing Ph.D. work in Gender Studies at Ambedkar University Delhi. The home-based workers interviewed were in “non-factory” wage relations based on piece rates with flexible working hours. Their workplaces were their own homes with no spatial divide between living spaces and workspaces. Home-based workers were recognized as a group in the domain of labor economics in the 1980s. When menial work was cheaper than machine work, the capital owners preferred to outsource work as home-based work to women. These production spaces are fragmented and the identity of gender is created within labor processes to favor material accumulation. Both the employers and employees acknowledged the material gain of the capital owner when work was subcontracted to women at home. Simultaneously the market reinforced women’s reproductive role by conforming to patriarchal ideology. The contractors played an important role in implementing localized control on workers and also in finding workers for fragmented, gendered production processes. Their presence helped the employers in bringing together multiple forms of oppression that ranged from creating a structure to flout laws by creating shadow employers. It created an intertwined social and economic structure as well as a workspace where the line between productive and reproductive work gets blurred. The state invisibilized itself either by keeping the sector out of the domain of laws or by not implementing its own laws regulating working conditions or social security. It allowed the local hierarchy to function and define localized working conditions. The productive reproductive continuum reveals a labor control that influenced both the productive and reproductive work of women.

Keywords: informal sector, paid work, women workers, labor processes

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Authors: Salwa Hagag Abdelaziz, Dorria Salem, Hoda Zaki, Suzan Atteya

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Early detection of breast cancer saves many thousands of lives each year via application of mammography and genetic screening and many more lives could be saved if nurses are involved in breast care screening practices. So, the aim of the study was to identify nurse's role in early detection of breast cancer through mammography and genetic screening and its impact on patient's outcome. In order to achieve this aim, 400 women above 40 years, asymptomatic were recruited for mammography and genetic screening. In addition, 50 nurses and 6 technologists were involved in the study. A descriptive analytical design was used. Five tools were utilized: sociodemographic, mammographic examination and risk factors, women's before, during and after mammography, items relaying to technologists, and items related to nurses were also obtained. The study finding revealed that 3% of women detected for malignancy and 7.25% for fibroadenoma. Statistically, significant differences were found between mammography results and age, family history, genetic screening, exposure to smoke, and using contraceptive pills. Nurses have insufficient knowledge about screening tests. Based on these findings the present study recommended involvement of nurses in breast care which is very important to in force population about screening practices.

Keywords: mammography, early detection, genetic screening, breast cancer

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Authors: Umran Erciyes, Filiz Okumus

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The purpose of this study was the determination of factors which impact the pregnancy, birth experience and the opinions regarding the delivery type of the puerperants, after vaginal birth. This descriptive study includes 349 patients who gave births with normal birth in one of the hospital in İstanbul in May- November 2014. After birth, we interview with these women face to face. The descriptive information form and Perception of Birth Scale were used as data collection tool. SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) was used for statistical analysis. The average age of patients was 27.13, and the average score was 76.93±20.22. The patients are primary school graduate, and they do not have a job. They expressed an income outcome equality. More than half of women did not get educated before birth. Among educated patients, few women got educated overcoming the pain during labor process. As the time spent in the hospital for the birth increases, the birth perception of mothers is affected negatively. %86.8 of participants gave assisted delivery. Spontaneous vaginal birth has positive effects on birth perception. Establishing a vascular access, induction of labor performing enema, restriction of orally intake and movement, fundal pressure, episiotomy, nor to perform skin to skin contact with the baby after birth has adverse effects on the birth perceptions.

Keywords: antenatal care, birth experience, perception of birth, vaginal birth

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Authors: Germans Natuhwera, Peter Ellis, Acuda Wilson, Anne Merriman, Martha Rabwoni

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Objective: The aim of the study was to diagnose the socio-economic burden and impact of a diagnosis of cervical cancer (CC) in rural women in the context of low-resourced country Uganda, using a phenomenological enquiry. Methods: This was a multi-site phenomenological inquiry, conducted at three hospice settings; Mobile Hospice Mbarara in southwestern, Little Hospice Hoima in Western, and Hospice Africa Uganda Kampala in central Uganda. A purposive sample of women with a histologically confirmed diagnosis of CC was recruited. Data was collected using open-ended audio-recorded interviews conducted in the native languages of participants. Interviews were transcribed verbatim in English, and Braun and Clarke’s (2019) framework of thematic analysis was used. Results: 13 women with a mean age of 49.2 and age range 29-71 participated in the study. All participants were of low socioeconomic status. The majority (84.6%) had advanced disease at diagnosis. A fuller reading of transcripts produced four major themes clustered under; (1) socioeconomic characteristics of women, (2) impact of CC on women’s relationships, (3) disrupted and impaired activities of daily living (ADLs), and (4) economic disruptions. Conclusions: A diagnosis of CC introduces significant socio-economic disruptions in a woman’s and her family’s life. CC causes disability, impairs the woman and her family’s productivity hence exacerbating levels of poverty in the home. High and expensive out-of-pocket expenditure on treatment, investigations, and transport costs further compound the socio-economic burden. Decentralizing cancer care services to regional centers, scaling up screening services, subsidizing costs of cancer care services, or making cervical cancer care treatment free of charge, strengthening monitoring mechanisms in public facilities to curb the vice of healthcare workers soliciting bribes from patients, increased mass awareness campaigns about cancer, training more healthcare professionals in cancer investigation and management, and palliative care, and introducing an introductory course on gynecologic cancers into all health training institutions are recommended.

Keywords: activities of daily living, cervical cancer, out-of-pocket, expenditure, phenomenology, socioeconomic

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Authors: Wegig Muwonugroho

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Subjectivity in advertisement is a ‘power’ possessed by advertisements to construct trend, concept, truth, and ideology through subconscious mind. Advertisements, in performing their functions as message conveyors, use such visual representation to inspire what’s ideal to the people. Ambient media is advertising medium making the best use of the environment where the advertisement is located. Miracle Aesthetic Clinic (Miracle) popularizes the visual representation of its ambient media advertisement through the omission of face-image of both female mannequins that function as its ambient media models. Usually, the face of a model in advertisement is an image commodity having selling values; however, the faces of ambient media models in Miracle advertisement campaign are suppressed over the table and wall. This face concealing aspect creates not only a paradox of subjectivity but also plurality of meaning. This research applies critical discourse analysis method to analyze subjectivity in obtaining the insight of ambient media’s meaning. First, in the stage of textual analysis, the embedding attributes upon female mannequins imply that the models are denoted as the representation of modern women, which are identical with the identities of their social milieus. The communication signs aimed to be constructed are the women who lose their subjectivities and ‘feel embarrassed’ to flaunt their faces to the public because of pimples on their faces. Second, in the stage of analysis of discourse practice, it points out that ambient media as communication media has been comprehensively responded by the targeted audiences. Ambient media has a role as an actor because of its eyes-catching setting, and taking space over the area where the public are wandering around. Indeed, when the public realize that the ambient media models are motionless -unlike human- stronger relation then appears, marked by several responses from targeted audiences. Third, in the stage of analysis of social practice, soap operas and celebrity gossip shows on the television become a dominant discourse influencing advertisement meaning. The subjectivity of Miracle Advertisement corners women by the absence of women participation in public space, the representation of women in isolation, and the portrayal of women as an anxious person in the social rank when their faces suffered from pimples. The Ambient media as the advertisement campaign of Miracle is quite success in constructing a new trend discourse of face beauty that is not limited on benchmarks of common beauty virtues, but the idea of beauty can be presented by ‘when woman doesn’t look good’ visualization.

Keywords: ambient media, advertisement, subjectivity, power

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Authors: Fall Abdourahmane, Lazrak Meryem, El Hsaini Houda, El Ammari Laila, Gamih Hasnae, Yahyane Abdelhakim, Benjouad Abdelaziz, Aguenaou Hassan, El Kari Khalid

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Introduction: The double burden of malnutrition (DBM), defined by the concurrent occurrence of undernutrition and overnutrition, represents a critical public health issue, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. In Morocco, 61.3% of women of reproductive age (WRA) are classified as overweight or obese, with 30.4% meeting the criteria for obesity. Furthermore, 34.4% of WRA are affected by anaemia, and 49.7% present with iron deficiency anaemia. Objective: The objective of this study is to assess the individual-level prevalence of the double burden of malnutrition (DBM) among Moroccan WRA, focusing on the simultaneous presence of iron deficiency anaemia and overweight/obesity. Methods: A national cross-sectional survey was carried out on a representative sample of 2090 Moroccan WRA. The data collected encompassed blood samples, anthropometric measurements and socio-economic factors. Haemoglobin levels were assessed using a Hemocue device, while ferritin and CRP levels were determined through immunoturbidimetric analysis. Results: The prevalence of overweight/obesity among WRA in Morocco was 60.2%, iron deficiency affected 30.6%, anaemia was found in 34.4%, and 50.0% had iron deficiency anaemia. The coexistence of overweight/obesity with anaemia was observed in 19.2% and with iron deficiency in 16.3%. Among overweight/obese women, 32.5% were anaemic, 28.4% had iron deficiency, and 47.6% had iron deficiency anaemia. The prevalence of DBM was higher in urban areas compared to rural settings. Conclusion: The DBM among women of WRA showed an emergent reality of the interconnection and the coexistence at individual level of the undernutrition and the overnutrition. Therefore, effective and dual actions that could simultaneously address the double dimension of the DBM have to be implemented for the policy solutions to be successful.

Keywords: the double burden of malnutrition, iron deficiency anemia, overweight, obesity

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Authors: Renu Pattanshetty

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The aim of this narrative review is to highlight the impact of menopause on osteoporosis and weight gain. The review also aims to summarize physiotherapeutic strategies to combat the same.A thorough literature search was conducted using electronic databases like MEDline, PUBmed, Highwire Press, PUBmed Central for English language studies that included search terms like menopause, osteoporosis, obesity, weight gain, exercises, physical activity, physiotherapy strategies from the year 2000 till date. Out of 157 studies that included metanalyses, critical reviews and randomized clinical trials, a total of 84 were selected that met the inclusion criteria. Prevalence of obesity is increasing world - wide and is reaching epidemic proportions even in the menopausal women. Prevalence of abdominal obesity is almost double than that general obesity with rates in the US with 65.5% in women ages 40-59 years and 73.8 in women aged 60 years or more. Physical activities and exercises play a vital role in prevention and treatment of osteoporosis and weight gain related to menopause that aim to boost the general well-being and any symptoms brought about by natural body changes. Endurance exercises lasting about 30 minutes /day for 5 days/ week has shown to decrease weight and prevent weight gain. In addition, strength training with at least 8 exercises of 8-12 repetitions working for whole body and for large muscle groups has shown to result positive outcomes. Hot flashes can be combatted through yogic breathing and relaxation exercises. Prevention of fall strategies and resistance training are key to treat diagnosed cases of osteoporosis related to menopause. One to three sets with five to eight repetitions of four to six weight bearing exercises have shown positive results. Menopause marks an important time for women to evaluate their risk of obesity and osteoporosis. It is known fact that bone benefit from exercises are lost when training is stopped, hence, practicing bone smart habits and strict adherence to recommended physical activity programs are recommended which are enjoyable, safe and effective.

Keywords: menopause, osteoporosis, obesity, weight gain, exercises, physical activity, physiotherapy strategies

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Authors: Manjunath A. P., Al-Ajmi G. M., Al Shukri M., Girija S

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Introduction: This study aimed to compare the ability of hysteroscopy and ultrasonography to diagnose uterine polyps. To correlate the ultrasonography and hystroscopic findings with various clinical factors and histopathology of uterine polyps. Methods: This is a retrospective study conducted at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital from 2014 to 2019. All women undergoing hysteroscopy for suspected uterine polyps were included. All relevant data were obtained from the electronic patient record and analysed using SPSS. Results: A total of 77 eligible women were analysed. The mean age of the patients was 40 years. The clinical risk factors; obesity, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus, showed no significant statistical association with the presence of uterine polyps (p-value>0.005). Although 20 women (52.6%) with uterine polyps had thickened endometrium (>11 mm), however, there is no statistical association (p-value>0.005). The sensitivity and specificity of ultrasonography in the detection of uterine polyp were 39% and 65%, respectively. Whereas for hysteroscopy, it was 89% and 20%, respectively. The prevalence of malignant and premalignant lesions were 1.85% and 7.4%, respectively. Conclusion: This study found that obesity, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus were not associated with the presence of uterine polyps. There was no association between thick endometrium and uterine polyps. The sensitivity is higher for hysteroscopy, whereas the specificity is higher for sonography in detecting uterine polyps. The prevalence of malignancy was very low in uterine polyps.

Keywords: endometrial polyps, hysteroscopy, ultrasonography, premalignant, malignant

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Authors: Luziane De Fatima Kirchner, Maria De Jesus Dutra Dos Reis, Francine Nathalie Ferraresi Rodrigues Queluz

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This study evaluated the effect of two components of analytic-behavioral intervention (1-management of conditions of the physical environment, 2-management of the interpersonal relationship) of women with fibromyalgia (FM), besides Clinical Significance and Reliable Change at the end of the intervention. Self-report instruments were used to evaluate stress, anxiety, depression, social skills and disability due to pain and Cortisol Awakening Response (CAR). Four women with a medical diagnosis of FM (mean age 52.7; sd = 6.65), participated of the following procedures: initial evaluation, 10 sessions of component 1, intermediate evaluation, 10 sessions of component 2, and final evaluation. The 20 sessions were effective, with positive changes in the scores of all the self-report instruments, highlighting the results of the stress symptoms that had improvement in the intermediate evaluation. There was, however, no change in the cortisol response on awakening. The Clinical Significance or Reliable Change observed, according to the scores of the stress, anxiety, depression and social skills instruments, corroborated the reports of the participants in the session and the objectives of the treatment. Implications for future studies are discussed, above all, the importance in conducting evaluations with the use of direct measures together with self-report measures.

Keywords: behavioral intervention, clinical significance, fibromyalgia, reliable change

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Authors: Adrita Banerjee, Ajeet Kumar Singh

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Antenatal care (ANC) from a skilled provider is important to monitor the pregnancy and reduce the risk of morbidity for mother and baby during pregnancy and delivery. The quality of antenatal care can be monitored through the content of services received and the kind of information mothers are given during their visit. Objective: The paper tries to examine the association between ANC check-ups and size/ birth weight. It also focuses on investigating the relationship between utilization of recommended prenatal care for mothers and its effect on infant survival in Nepal. Data and methods: This paper uses data from Nepal demographic Health Survey 2011. To understand the relationship bi-variate statistical analysis and logistic regressions has been done. Maternal health care utilization include ANC check-ups i.e. the type of ante-natal care providers, the number and timing of the visit. The various components of the check-ups include intake of iron tablets/syrups, intestinal parasitic drugs, etc. Results: The results show that women who had no antenatal care visits about 40% had small sized babies at the time of birth compared to women to had at least 3 ANC check up. Women who had at least 3 check-ups 17% of the babies have a small size. It has also been found that about 50 % of the women prefer ANC check-ups during pregnancies which have resulted in lowering the infant mortality by about 40% during 1996-2011. Conclusion: Ante natal care check is care and monitoring of the pregnant woman and her foetus throughout pregnancy. ANC checks have an effect on the infant health and child survival. A woman who had at least three check-ups the possibilities of adverse effect on infant health and infant survival was significantly lower. The findings argue for a more enhanced focus on ANC check-ups for improving the maternal and child health in Nepal.

Keywords: maternal, health, pregnancy, outcome

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Authors: Priyanka Manghani, Manthan Patel, Rahul Peddawad

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Cervical Cancer is a major public health hurdle in the area of women’s health. The most common cause of Cervical Cancer is the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Human papilloma virus has various genotypes, with HPV 16 and HPV 18 being the major etiological factor causing carcinoma of the Cervix. Early screening and detection by Papanicolaou Smears (PAP) is an effective method for identifying premalignant and malignant lesions. In case of existing pre- malignant lesions /cervical dysplasia’s found with HPV 16 or 18, appropriate follow up can be done to prevent it from developing into a neoplasm. Aims and Objectives: Primary Aim; To study various abnormal cervical cytology reports as detected by Pap Smear Tests, using the Bethesda System in women at a Tertiary Care Hospital. Secondary Aim; To discuss the importance of Pap smear in Cervical Cancer Screening Program. Materials and Methods: Our study is a prospective study, based on 101 women who attended the Out-patient department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at a tertiary care hospital in age group 20-40 years with chief complaints of white/foul vaginal discharge, post-coital Bleeding, low back pain, irregular menstruation, etc. 60 women, who were tested, of the total no of women, were commercial sex workers, thus being a high-risk group for HPV infection. All women underwent conventional cytology. For all the abnormal smears, further cervical biopsies were done, and the final diagnosis was done on the basis of histopathology (gold standard). Results: In all these patients, 16 patients presented with normal smears out of which 2 belonged to the category of commercial sex workers (3.33%) and 14 being from the normal/control group (34.15%). 44 women presented with inflammatory smears out of which 30 were commercial sex workers (50%) and 14 from the control Group (34.15%). A total of 11 women presented with infectious etiology with 6 being commercial sex workers (10%) and 5 (12.2%) being in the control group. A total of 8 patients presented with low-grade squamous intra epithelial lesion (LSIL) with 7 (11.7%) being commercial sex workers and 1(2.44%) patient belonging to the control group. A Total of 7 patients presented with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL) with 6 (10%) being commercial sex workers and 1 (2.44%) belonging to the control group. 9 patients in total presented with atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASCUS) with 6(10%) being commercial sex workers and 3 (7.32%) belonging to the control group. Squamous cell carcinoma(SCC) presence was found only in 1(1.7%) commercial sex worker. Conclusion – We conclude that HSIL, LSIL, SCC and sexually related infections are comparatively more common in vulnerable groups such as sex workers due to a variety of factors such as multiple sexual partners and poor genital hygiene. Early screening and follow up interventions are highly needed for them along with Health education for risk factors and to emphasize on the importance of Pap smear screening.

Keywords: cervical cancer, papanicolaou (pap) smear, bethesda system, neoplasm

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Authors: Mohd Sarfaraz

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The objective of this study is to investigate the work-life balance and job satisfaction among women employees in a hospital in India. It is believed that balancing a successful career with a family life or personal life can be challenging. WLB impacts on persons' satisfaction in their work and personal life roles. For this purpose, a questionnaire is developed with 22 items. The data collected from women employees who are working in a hospital in Aligarh, India. The constructs considered in this study include WLB and job satisfaction. The demographic and organisational variables considered in the study are genders, age and tenure of the job. Factors of WLB are flexible working conditions, work-life balance programs, and employee intention to change/leave a job, work pressure/stress and long working hours. This paper examines the relationship between work-family conflict, policies, and job and life satisfaction. Appropriate statistical tool using SPSS will be applied to achieve the objective. The anxiety over work-life balance is progressively becoming a common talk, especially for female employees.Increasing demands from the work and family domains represent a high strain for employees which even lead to the health problems among employees. Although it is believed that work-family role strain is more common among women employees. Therefore, the study will focus on these issues of WLB and job satisfaction among female professionals.

Keywords: work-life balance, job satisfaction, work- family conflict, health

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Authors: Sopio Totibadze

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Although the legal framework of Georgia reflects the main principles of gender equality and is in line with the international situation (UNDP, 2018), Georgia remains a male-dominated society. This means that men prevail in many areas of social, economic, and political life, which frequently gives women a subordinate status in society and the family (UN women). According to the latest study, “violence against women and girls in Georgia is also recognized as a public problem, and it is necessary to focus on it” (UN women). Moreover, the Public Defender's report on the protection of human rights in Georgia (2019) reveals that “in the last five years, 151 women were killed in Georgia due to gender and family violence”. Sadly, these statistics have increased significantly since that time. The issue was acutely reflected in the document published by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, “Gender Hate Crime” (March 10, 2021). “Unfortunately, the rates of femicide ..... are still high in the country, and distrust of law enforcement agencies often makes such cases invisible, which requires special attention from the state.” More precisely, the cited document considers that there are frequent cases of crimes based on gender-based oppression in Georgia, which pose a threat not only to women but also to people of any gender whose desires and aspirations do not correspond to the gender norms and roles prevailing in society. According to the study, this type of crime has a “significant and lasting impact on the victim(s) and also undermines the safety and cohesion of society and gender equality”. It is well-known that language is often used as a tool for gender oppression (Rusieshvili-Cartledge and Dolidze, 2021; Totibadze, 2021). Therefore, feminist and gender studies in linguistics ultimately serve to represent the problem, reflect on it, and propose ways to solve it. Together with technical advancement in communication, a new form of discrimination has arisen- hate language against women in electronic media discourse. Due to the nature of social media and the internet, messages containing hate language can spread in seconds and reach millions of people. However, only a few know about the detrimental effects they may have on the addressee and society. This paper aims to analyse the hateful comments directed at women on various media platforms to determine (1) the linguistic strategies used while attacking women and (2) the reasons why women may fall victim to this type of hate language. The data have been collected over six months, and overall, 500 comments will be examined for the paper. Qualitative and quantitative analysis was chosen for the methodology of the study. The comments posted on various media platforms, including social media posts, articles, or pictures, have been selected manually due to several reasons, the most important being the problem of identifying hate speech as it can disguise itself in different ways- humour, memes, etc. The comments on the articles, posts, pictures, and videos selected for sociolinguistic analysis depict a woman, a taboo topic, or a scandalous event centred on a woman that triggered a lot of hatred and hate language towards the person to whom the post/article was dedicated. The study has revealed that a woman can become a victim of hatred directed at them if they do something considered to be a deviation from a societal norm, namely, get a divorce, be sexually active, be vocal about feministic values, and talk about taboos. Interestingly, people who utilize hate language are not only men trying to “normalize” the prejudiced patriarchal values but also women who are equally active in bringing down a "strong" woman. The paper also aims to raise awareness about the hate language directed at women, as being knowledgeable about the issue at hand is the first step to tackling it.

Keywords: femicide, hate language, media discourse, sociolinguistics

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Authors: Awatef Ahmed Ben Ramadan, Aqsa Arshad

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Background: There is a huge Muslim migration movement to North America and Europe for several reasons, primarily refuge from war areas and partly to search for better work and educational chances. There are always concerns regarding first-Generation Immigrant women's health and computer literacy, an adequate understanding of the health systems, and the use of the existing healthcare technology and services effectively and efficiently. Language proficiency level, preference for cultural and traditional remedies, socioeconomic factors, fear of stereotyping, limited accessibility to health services, and general unfamiliarity with the existing health services and resources are familiar variables among these women. Aims: The current study aims to assess the health and digital literacy of first-generation Muslim women in Atlanta city. Also, the study aims to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic has encouraged the use of health information technology and increased technology awareness among the targeted women. Methods: The study design is cross-sectional correlational research. The study will be conducted to produce preliminary results that the investigators want to have to supplement an NIH grant application about leveraging information technology to reduce the health inequalities amongst the first-generation immigrant Muslim women in Atlanta City. The investigators will collect the study data in two phases using different tools. Phase one was conducted in June 2022; the investigators used tools to measure health and digital literacy amongst 42 first-generation immigrant Muslim women. Phase two was conducted in November 2022; the investigators measured the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) of using health information technology such as telehealth from a sample of 45 first-generation Muslim immigrant women in Atlanta; in addition, the investigators measured how the current pandemic has affected their KAP to use telemedicine and telehealth services. Both phases' study participants were recruited using convenience sampling methodology. The investigators collected around 40 of 18 years old or older first-generation Muslim immigrant women for both study phases. The study excluded Immigrants who hold work visas and second-generation immigrants. Results: At the point of submitting this abstract, the investigators are still analyzing the study data to produce preliminary results to apply for an NIH grant entitled "Leveraging Health Information Technology (Health IT) to Address and Reduce Health Care Disparities (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)". This research will be the first step of a comprehensive research project to assess and measure health and digital literacy amongst a vulnerable community group. The targeted group might have different points of view from the U.S.-born inhabitants on how to: promote their health, gain healthy lifestyles and habits, screen for diseases, adhere to health treatment and follow-up plans, perceive the importance of using available and affordable technology to communicate with their providers and improve their health, and help in making serious decisions for their health. The investigators aim to develop an educational and instructional health mobile application considering the language and cultural factors that affect immigrants' ability to access different health and social support sources, know their health rights and obligations in their communities, and improve their health behavior and behavior lifestyles.

Keywords: first-generation immigrant Muslim women, telehealth, COVID-19 pandemic, health information technology, health and digital literacy

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Authors: Aaron Samuels, Ahmad Badeghiesh, Haitham Baghlaf, Michael H. Dahan

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Importance: Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women globally and a significant cause of cancer-related deaths. Understanding the impact of cervical cancer diagnosed during pregnancy on maternal, delivery, and neonatal outcomes is crucial for improving clinical management and outcomes for affected women and their children. Objective: The goal is to determine the effects of cervical cancer diagnosed during pregnancy on maternal, delivery, and neonatal outcomes using a population-based American database. Design: This study is a retrospective analysis of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Nationwide Inpatient Sample (HCUP-NIS) database. The study period spans between 2004-2014, and the analysis was conducted in 2023. Setting: The study used the HCUP-NIS database, which includes data from hospital stays across the United States, covering 48 states and the District of Columbia. Participants: The study included all women who delivered a child or had a maternal death from 2004-2014, with pregnancies at 24 weeks or above. The population was comprised of 9,096,788 pregnant women, including 222 diagnosed with cervical cancer prior to delivery. Exposures: The exposure was a diagnosis of cervical cancer during pregnancy, identified using International Classification of Diseases 9th Revision codes 180.0, 180.1, 180.8, and 180.9. Main Outcomes and Measures: Primary outcomes included maternal, delivery, and neonatal complications including preterm delivery, cesarean section, hysterectomy, blood transfusion, deep venous thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, congenital anomalies, intrauterine fetal demise, and small-for-gestational-age neonates. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the association between cervical cancer diagnosis and these outcomes, adjusting for potential confounding factors. Results: Women with cervical cancer were older (25.2% ≥35 years vs. 14.7%, p=0.001, respectively); more likely to have Medicare insurance (1.4% vs. 0.6%, p=0.005, respectively); use illicit drugs (4.1% vs. 1.4%, p=0.001, respectively); smoke tobacco during pregnancy (14.9% vs. 4.9%, p=0.001, respectively); and have chronic hypertension (3.6% vs. 1.8%, p=0.046, respectively). These women also had higher rates of preterm delivery (OR = 4.73, 95% CI (3.53-6.36), p=0.001); cesarean section (OR = 5.40, 95% CI (4.00-7.30), p=0.001); hysterectomy (OR = 390.23, 95% CI (286.43-531.65), p=0.001); blood transfusions (OR = 19.23, 95% CI (13.57-27.25), p=0.001); deep venous thrombosis (OR = 9.42, 95% CI (1.32-67.20), p=0.025); and pulmonary embolism (OR = 20.22, 95% CI (2.83-144.48), p=0.003). Neonatal outcomes, including congenital anomalies, intrauterine fetal demise, and small-for-gestational-age neonates, were comparable between groups. Conclusions and Relevance: Cervical cancer during pregnancy is associated with significant maternal and delivery risks; however, neonatal outcomes are largely unaffected. These findings highlight the need for a multidisciplinary approach to managing pregnant cervical cancer patients involving oncological, obstetrical, and neonatal care specialists.

Keywords: cervical cancer, maternal outcomes, neonatal outcomes, delivery outcomes

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Authors: Flora Takayindisa, Tsoaledi Thobejane, Thizwilondi Mudau

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This study highlights what people in polygamous marriages face on a daily basis. It argues that there are more disadvantages for women in polygamous marriages than their counterparts in monogamous relationships. The study further suggests that the patriarchal power structure seems to take a powerful and effective role on polygamous marriages in our societies, particularly in Zimbabwe where this study took place. The study explored the intricacies of polygamous marriages and how these dominances can be resolved. The research is therefore presented through the ‘lived realities’ of the affected women in polygamous marriages in Gutu District located in Masvingo Province of Zimbabwe. Polygamous marriages are practised in different societies. Some women who are practising a polygamous lifestyle are emotionally and physically abused in their relationships. Evidence also suggests children from polygamous marriages also suffer psychologically when their fathers take other wives. Relationships within the family are very difficult because of the husband’s seeming favouritism for one wife. Children are mostly affected by disputes between co-wives and they often lack quality time with their fathers. There are mixed feelings about polygamous marriages. There are some people who condemn it saying inhumane. However, considerations must be made of what it might mean to other people who do not have choices of any other form of marriage. The other factor that has to be noted is that polygamous marriages are not always negative. There are some positive things that result from the polygamous marriages. The study was conducted in a village called Matizha. In the study, a qualitative research approach was employed to stimulate awareness of the social, cultural, religious and the effect of economic factors in polygamous marriages. This approach facilitates a unique understanding of the experiences of women in polygamous marriages, their experiences being both negative and positive. The qualitative type of research method enabled the respondents to have an open minded when they were being asked questions. The researcher utilised the feminist theory in the study. The researcher employed guide interviews to acquire information from the participants. The chapter focuses on the participants who took part in the study, how the participants were selected, ethical considerations, data collection, the interview process, the research instruments and the summary. The data was obtained using a guided interview for all the respondents ranging from all ages who are in polygamous marriages. The researcher presented the demographic information of the participants. Thereafter, the researcher presented other aspects of the data collection like social factors, economic factors and also religious affiliation. The conclusions and recommendations are made from the four main themes that came up from the discussions. The recommendations were made for the women, the policies and laws affecting women, and finally, recommendations for future research. It is believed that the overall objectives of the study have been met and research questions have been answered based on the findings of the study discussed.

Keywords: co-wives, egalitarianism, experiences, polyandry, polygamy, woman

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Authors: Toka M. Abufarag

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This research primarily studies the correlation between the existence of different spatial factors in relation to the perception of females towards safely participating in the labor force within selected areas of economic bustle in Historic Cairo. This research measures the following independent variables: (1) perception regarding spatial safety on the street as controlled by street network, (2) vegetation as a facilitator and inhibitor of feeling safe in public places, and (3) outdoor lighting; in relation to the following dependent variable: the perception of females towards safely participating in the labor force in Historic Cairo. The objective of this research lies within adding to the design guidelines of urban design and planning in terms of design recommendations, making them more inclusive, especially those dealing with conserving and enhancing the built environment of old and historic cities. It is hypothesized that a balanced male-to-female ratio in terms of street activity, increased visibility of street in terms of its volume, a decrease in street obstacles, creation of open sighted vegetation, and increased visibility due to proper lighting will show up as positive response relating to the female perception of safety. The site chosen as an area to host this exercise of data collection is Al-Ataba. The site is within the borders of Historic Cairo and was chosen for two reasons: firstly, it provides a major source of economic bustle in Historic Cairo; and secondly, it hosts retail economic activities. This is a cross-sectional study. The data collected will consist of three parts: (1) observations by the researcher regarding the percentage of female participation, as well as perception of females on site, (2) interviews with women working on-site regarding the percentage of female participation, as well as their perception on participating, and (3) an anonymous online survey that studies the perception of a random sample of women towards the site as a place to exist in. The survey will aid in producing design recommendations on how to design an open 'souk' that suits women’s perception of a safe space.

Keywords: urban design, women empowerment, safety perception, street markets, historic Cairo

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Authors: Vidhya R

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The claim of feminists that women are made and not born is neither to set women on par with men nor to discriminate one from the other, but to establish and reiterate the fact that both the sexes have to understand, recognize and appreciate each other’s ability and responsibility thus to contribute to the peaceful co-existence of both, leading to the creation of a better and brave new world, which is neither patriarchal nor matriarchal. But history has repeatedly recorded the relegation of women to the secondary position consummated through the highly biased cultural, ritualistic and customary practices across the globe. In Africa, bracing herself against many odds through generations, the African woman who has been facing multiple jeopardy promulgated by racial, cultural, economic and gender discrimination has slowly started moving from the margins towards the center. The African woman was able to undertake the journey from the margins to the center bravely only because of her grit, grace, courage, confidence, and spirituality. This journey has resulted in the metamorphosis of the African woman’s psyche. Economic independence fortified with education has empowered the African woman. The various stages of metamorphosis are well delineated in the works of the contemporary Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. The objective of this research paper is to study the above said metamorphosis, the female protagonists undergo in Adichie’s novels. The approaches on which the study is based on are the Africana Womanist theory propounded by Clenora Hudson –Weems and African feminism of Carole Boyce Davies. The findings of this study lead towards establishing the proposition that the emergence and evolution of the Nigerian woman has resulted in the birth of a new breed of women – the Emphatic Female, manifested in the power packed portrayal of the female protagonists of Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Keywords: Africana womanism, African feminism, chimamanda ngozi adichie, metamorphosis, the emphatic female

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Authors: Afaf Abdallah, Moawia Elsadig

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Background: Cervical cancer is the second most common women cancer among worldwide; representing 13% of female cancers. In Sudan, it ranks as the second most frequent cancer among women as other developing countries. Aim: Is to study awareness, attitude of nursing students towards cervical cancer prevention. The results: Most of the students were not aware of other screening methods than Pap smear test. However, half of the respondents showed positive attitudes towards HPV vaccination. More than two-thirds of respondents exhibited a positive attitude and were willing to undergo Pap smear in the future. Conclusion: The study shows that the majority of the participants have poor information, education would motivate nurses to participate actively in awareness raising, screening, and management.

Keywords: cervical cancer, knowledge, attitude, screening

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Authors: A van Onselen, C. M. Walsh, F. J. Veldman, C. Brand

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Objectives: To determine the nutritional status and risk factors associated with women practicing geophagia in QwaQwa, South Africa. Materials and Methods: An observational epidemiological study design was adopted which included an exposed (geophagia) and non-exposed (control) group. A food frequency questionnaire, anthropometric measurements and blood sampling were applied to determine nutritional status of participants. Logistic regression analysis was performed in order to identify factors that were likely to be associated with the practice of geophagia. Results: The mean total energy intake for the geophagia group (G) and control group(C) were 10324.31 ± 2755.00 kJ and 10763.94 ± 2556.30 kJ respectively. Both groups fell within the overweight category according to the mean body mass index (BMI) of each group (G= 25.59 kg/m2; C= 25.14 kg/m2). The mean serum iron levels of the geophagia group (6.929 μmol/l) were significantly lower than that of the control group (13.75 μmol/l) (p = 0.000). Serum transferrin (G=3.23g/l; C=2.7054g/l) and serum transferrin saturation (G=8.05%; C=18.74%) levels also differed significantly between groups (p=0.00). Factors that were associated with the practice of geophagia included haemoglobin (Odds ratio (OR):14.50), serum-iron (OR: 9.80), serum-ferritin (OR: 3.75), serum-transferrin (OR: 6.92) and transferrin saturation (OR: 14.50). A significant negative association (p=0.014) was found between women who were wage-earners and those who were not wage-earners and the practice of geophagia (OR: 0.143; CI: 0.027; 0.755). These findings seem to indicate that a permanent income may decrease the likelihood of practising geophagia. Key findings: Geophagia was confirmed to be a risk factor for iron deficiency in this community. The significantly strong association between geophagia and iron deficiency emphasizes the importance of identifying the practice of geophagia in women, especially during their child bearing years. Further research to establish whether the practice of geophagia is a cause of iron-deficiency, or whether it is the consequence thereof, would give a clearer view on how to recognise and treat the condition.

Keywords: geophagia, iron deficiency anaemia, dietary intake, anthropometry

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Authors: D. Tohlob, E. Abo Hashem, N. Ghareeb, M. Ghanem, R. Elfarahaty, S. A. Roberts, P. Pemberton, L. Mohiyiddeen, W. G. Newman

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Gonadotropin stimulation is used in females undergoing assisted reproductive treatment for ovulation induction, but ovarian response is variable and unpredictable in these women. More effective protocols and individualization of treatment are needed to increase the success rate of IVF/ICSI cycles. We genotyped seven variants reported in previous studies to be associated with ovarian response (number of ova retrieved and total gonadotropin dose) in women undergoing IVF treatment including FSHR variants Asn 680 Ser (c.2039 A > G), Thr 307 Ala (c. 919 > A), -29 G > A, HRG c.610 C > T gene, BMP15 -9 C > G, AMH Ile 49 Ser (c.146 G > T), and AMHR -489A˃G in 118 Egyptian females attending Mansoura Integrated Fertility Center in Egypt, these females were undergoing their first cycle of controlled ovarian hyper stimulation for IVF/ICSI treatment. They were analyzed by TaqMan allelic discrimination assay in Manchester Center of Genomic Medicine. We found no evidence of any significant difference (p value < 0.05) in the number of eggs retrieved or the gonadotropin dose used between individuals in all genotypes except for HRG c.610 C > T gene polymorphism where regression analysis gives a p value of 0.04 with a fewer eggs number in TT genotyped females. These results indicate that these variants do not provide sufficient clinically relevant data to individualize the treatment protocols.

Keywords: controlled ovarian hyperstimulation, gene variants, ovarian response, assisted reproduction

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Authors: Henok Yebyo Henok, Araya Abrha Araya, Alemayehu Bayray Alemayehu, Gelila Goba Gelila

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Background: Every year, an estimated 19–20 million unsafe abortions take place, almost all in developing countries, leading to 68,000 deaths and millions more injured many permanently. Many women throughout the world, experience more than one abortion in their lifetimes. Repeat abortion is an indicator of the larger problem of unintended pregnancy. This study aimed to identify determinants of repeat abortion in Tigray Region, Ethiopia. Methods: Unmatched case-control study was conducted in hospitals in Tigray Region, Northern Ethiopia, from November 2014 to June 2015. The sample included 105 cases and 204 controls, recruited from among women seeking abortion care at public hospitals. Clients having two or more abortions (“repeat abortion”) were taken as cases, and those who had a total of one abortion were taken as controls (“single abortion”). Cases were selected consecutive based on proportional to size allocation while systematic sampling was employed for controls. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Binary and multiple variable logistic regression analyses were calculated with 95% CI. Results: Mean age of cases was 24 years (±6.85) and 22 years (±6.25) for controls. 79.0% of cases had their sexual debut in less than 18 years of age compared to 57% of controls. 42.2% of controls and 23.8% of cases cited rape as the reason for having an abortion. Study participants who did not understand their fertility cycle and when they were most likely to conceive after menstruation (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=2.0, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.1-3.7), having a previous abortion using medication(AOR=3.3, CI: 1.83, 6.11), having multiple sexual partners in the preceding 12 months (AOR=4.4, CI: 2.39,8.45), perceiving that the abortion procedure is not painful (AOR=2.3, CI: 1.31,4.26), initiating sexual intercourse before the age of 18 years (AOR=2.7, CI: 1.49, 5.23) and disclosure to a third-party about terminating the pregnancy (AOR=2.1, CI: 1.2,3.83) were independent predictors of repeat abortion. Conclusion: This study identified several factors correlated with women having repeat abortions. It may be helpful for the Government of Ethiopia to encourage women to delay sexual debut and decrease their number of sexual partners, including by promoting discussion within families about sexuality, to decrease the occurrence of repeated abortion.

Keywords: abortion, Ethiopia, repeated abortion, single abortion

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Authors: Franck Kem Acho

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The trends of diseases have been changed from the last few years, now the burden of non-communicable diseases is increasing day by day. In all the non-communicable diseases, Hypertension is one of the leading causes of premature death and morbidity worldwide. This disease is a silent killer, it mostly affects the people with no obvious symptoms. Not only the heart it also increases the risk of brain, kidney and other diseases, now a days it is a serious medical problem. Over a billion people near about 1 in 4 men and 1 in 5 women having hypertension. In this case study men and women of ages between 30-80 years with Hypertension were identified in community remote area with their Health status being checked and monitored for one week and Health Education was provided for the importance of regular Health checkup alongside the continuous taking of medications.

Keywords: hypertension, health status, health check up, health education

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Authors: Mehak Nagpal, T. S. Sathyanarayan Rao

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Background: Sexual functioning is a neglected aspect of health in women with diabetes, though it contributes greatly towards quality of life and feeling of wellbeing. Also women with DM are at higher risk than men of developing sexual dysfunction and depression. Materials and Methods: Cross-sectional comparison study. Sample size: 100 previously diagnosed type 2DM patients attending Outpatient Diabetic Clinic at Medicine department JSS Hospital Mysore; aged 20-65 years and 60 normal healthy female subjects for Control group. Data was collected with ethical approval over a period of 2 years. Tools Used: 1) Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD – 17 item) 2) Female Sexual Functioning Index (FSFI) 3) Arizona Sexual Experience Scale (ASEX-F) for female-for screening. 4) The Appraisal of Diabetes Scale (ADS). Results: Statistically significant differences were observed in prevalence rate and severity of depression between diabetic group (45% vs 11% syndromal depression) and controls. Depression scores correlated significantly with glycaemic control, adherence to treatment, BMI and the cognitive appraisal of diabetes. There was significantly greater impairment in the sexual functioning of women with type 2 diabetes mellitus as compared to controls; both prevalence (62% vs 38.3%) and severity (p value < 0.01). Arousal (74.2% vs 53.3%), Desire (76.3% vs 50%) and Satisfaction (76.7% vs 63.7%) were most affected and 64.5% were affected in 2 or more domains. A negative illness appraisal on ADS correlated significantly with poor glycaemic control, higher rates of depression and also more severe female sexual dysfunction (p value < 0.05). Conclusion: Diabetes specific factors that correlated significantly with FSD in this study included the psychological appraisal of diabetes, duration of diabetes, presence of complications and BMI.

Keywords: depression, female sexual dysfunction, India, type 2 diabetes mellitus

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Authors: Humaira Maheen, Elizabeth Hoban, Catherine Bennette

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Background: Globally, role of Community Health Workers (CHW) as front line disaster health work force is underutilized. Developing countries which are at risk of natural disasters or humanitarian emergencies should lay down effective strategies especially to ensure adequate access to maternity care during crisis situation by using CHW as they are local, trained, and most of them possess a good relationship with the community. The Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) is a set of universal guidelines that addresses women’s reproductive health needs during the first phase of an emergency. According to the MISP, pregnant women should have access to a skilled birth attendant and adequate transportation arrangements so they can access a maternity care facility. Pakistan is one of the few countries which has been severely affected by a number of natural disaster as well as humanitarian emergencies in last decade. Pakistan has a young and structured National Disaster Management System in place, where District Authorities play a vital role in disaster management. The District Health Department develops the contingency health plan for an emergency situation and implements it under the existing district health human resources (health workers and medical staff at the health facility) and infrastructure (health care facilities). Methods: A mixed methods study was conducted in rural villages of Sindh adjacent to the river Indus, and included in-depth interviews with 15 women who gave birth during the floods, structured interviews with 668 women who were pregnant during 2010-2014, and in-depth interviews with 25 community health workers (CHW) and 30 key informants. Results: Women said that giving birth in the relief camps during the floods was one of the most challenging times of their life. The district health department didn’t make transportation arrangement for labouring women from relief camp to the nearest health care facility. As a result 91.2% women gave birth in temporary shelters with the help of a traditional birth attendant (Dai) with no clean physical space available to birth. Of the 332 women who were pregnant at the time of the floods, 26 had adverse birth outcomes; 10 had miscarriages, 14 had stillbirths and there were four neonatal deaths. Conclusion: The district health department was not able to provide access to adequate maternity care during according to the international standard during the floods in 2011. We propose a model where CHWs will be used as frontline maternity care providers during any emergency or disaster situations in Pakistan. A separate "birthing station" should be mandatory in all district relief camps, managed by CHWs. Community midwives (CMW) would and the Lady Health Workers (LHW) would provide antenatal and postnatal care alongside, vaccination for pregnant women, neonates and children under five. There must be an ambulance facility for emergency obstetric cases and all district health facilities should have at least two medical staff identified and trained for emergency obstetric management. The District Health Department must provide clean birthing kits and regular and emergency contraceptives in the relief camps. Methods: A mixed methods study was conducted in rural villages of Sindh adjacent to the river Indus, and included in-depth interviews with 15 women who gave birth during the floods, structured interviews with 668 women who were pregnant during 2010-2014, and in-depth interviews with 25 community health workers (CHW) and 30 key informants. Results: Women said that giving birth in the relief camps during the floods was one of the most challenging times of their life. Nearly 91.2% women gave birth in temporary shelters with the help of a traditional birth attendant (Dai) with no clean physical space available to birth, and the health camp was mostly accessed by men and always overcrowded. There was no obstetric trained medical staff in the health camps or transportation provided to take women with complications to the nearest health facility. The rate of adverse outcome following disaster was 22.2% (95% CI: 8.62% – 42.2%) amongst 27 women who did not evacuate as compare to 7.91% (95% CI: 5.03% – 11.8%) among 278 women who lived in relief camp study participants. There were 27 women who evacuated on pre-flood warning and had 0% rate of adverse outcome. Conclusion: We propose a model where CHWs will be used as frontline maternity care providers during any emergency or disaster situations in Pakistan. A separate "birthing station" should be mandatory in all district relief camps, managed by CHWs. Community midwives (CMW) would and the Lady Health Workers (LHW) would provide antenatal and postnatal care alongside, vaccination for pregnant women, neonates and children under five. There must be an ambulance facility for emergency obstetric cases and all district health facilities should have at least two medical staff identified and trained for emergency obstetric management. The District Health Department must provide clean birthing kits and regular and emergency contraceptives in the relief camps.

Keywords: natural disaster, maternity care model, rural, Pakistan, community health workers

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Authors: Nana Yaw Ofori Gyasi

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Under the Common Law, there was a procedure called pleading the belly which allowed a woman who had reached the advanced stage of pregnancy to receive a reprieve of her death sentence until after she had put to bed. The plea was replaced with a legislation, which provides that a pregnant woman would automatically have her death sentence commuted to life imprisonment with hard labour. This Common Law principle has been continued and enacted into law by the various countries where the Common Law is practiced. This paper takes a look at what it terms as Pregnancy Legislations in some selected Common Law countries such as United States of America, Canada, England and Wales, Ghana and India to examine the scope, procedure and effect of such legislations. The paper adopts a comparative study approach to ascertain the country with the widest scope, non-complicated procedure and far-reaching effects of the Pregnancy Legislations. It is observed that some legislations make provision for the conversion of death penalty to life imprisonment for capital offences and also prescribe non-custodial sentence for non-capital offences. There are other legislations that merely suspend the death penalty while the convict is found to be pregnant. In terms of the procedure, some of the legislations make the issue of pregnancy a question of fact to be determined by a jury and in other legislations, the trial judge makes that determination after the judge is satisfied on the question of the convict being pregnant. The effects of the Pregnancy Legislation are observed to be varying. Women who give birth in prison are highly at risk of having stillbirth. Most of the prisons do not have adequate facilities to support expectant and lactating mothers while in prison. It has also been observed that with the number of female prisoners increasing over the years, custodial sentence for convicted pregnant women has a wider societal effect. The paper identifies certain gaps left in some of the legislations which relate to the procedure to be followed after custodial sentence is suspended for a convicted pregnant woman. The time the accused person got pregnant- whether before her arrest or during trial- and the effect of the timing of the pregnancy are gaps left in some of the legislations. The paper argues that such gaps should be filled by the legislator to prevent accused persons taking undue advantage of the Pregnancy Legislations. It is further argued that if convicted pregnant women will have to spend time in prison at all for very heinous crimes, the prison facilities should be improved so that expectant and lactating mothers can comfortably care for their babies and themselves to prevent dire health consequences for such mothers and the society at a whole.

Keywords: sentence of pregnant women, custodial sentence, , pregnant women, , common law

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Authors: Isa Shu’aibu, A. A. Mu’inat, F. U. Maigari, M. A. Mani

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Candida albicans is the common cause of both oral and vaginal candidiasis in humans. This candidiasis leads to a wide range of physical, psychological and even physiological problems in humans particularly pregnant women. Samples of endocervical and high vaginal swab were collected from 200 women attending Gombe Specialist Hospital and inoculated on Saboraud Dextrose Agar (SDA) incorporated with chloramphenicol to get rid of the unwanted bacterial contaminants. Gram staining technique and germ tube test were employed for the identification, as Candida albicans is positive for both. Gram positive samples were 70% (n=140) and were further subjected to germ tube test. The remaining 30% (n=60) were found to be Gram negative. 90% (n=126) of the Gram positive ones isolated were also found to be positive for germ tube test; confirming the presence of Candida albicans. Antifungal susceptibility testing revealed that members of Imidazole (Ketoconazole, Miconazole) and those of Triazoles (Fluconazole and Itraconazole) were found to be more effective at concentrations of 20, 50 and 100 µg/disc compared to Griseofulvin (Fulcin) with only 26.00 mm zone of inhibition at 100 µg/disc concentration.

Keywords: Candida albicans, candidiasis, endocervical, vaginal swab, antifungal susceptibility, imidazole, triazoles

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Authors: Katalin Szöllősi, László Szabó

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Introduction and purpose: Even though female sexual dysfunctions are common among women in the postpartum period, the profile of these disturbances has not been well investigated in Hungary yet. The aim of the study was to evaluate the postpartum female sexual functions in Hungary. This research sought to investigate the possible predictor factors which can influence postpartum female sexual functions. Method and sample: This was a cross-sectional study, including patients from two maternity clinics in Budapest. 113 women were recruited into our study 3 months after their childbirth. 53 had vaginal birth, 60 had a caesarian section. Data were collected from medical reports in addition by using self-developed questions and validated questionnaires in order to measure important predictors which may be responsible for postpartum sexual dysfunctions such as mode of delivery, parity, urinary incontinence and body image. Sexual functions were evaluated by the Hungarian version of the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). The Hungarian version of Body Image Questionnaire-Short Form14 (BSQ-SF14) was applied for assessing body image. Results: 82,3% of the participants began to have sexual intercourse within three months postpartum. 53,98% of the participants reported sexual dysfunctions (cut-off FSFI score 26,55). According to our results mode of delivery, parity, hemorrhoids, time of intercourse, resumption was not associated with female sexual dysfunctions. We found correlation at a tendential level between urinary incontinence and sexual dysfunctions (p=0,003, R=0,26). We found a negative correlation at a tendential level between the total score of BSQ-SF14 and FSFI (p=0,03, R=-0,269). Only 32,74% of women reported discussing sexual life with health care professionals. However, 67,25% of them would have had the need to be asked about their postpartum health issues. Conclusions and recommendations: The prevalence of female sexual dysfunctions were relatively high after childbirth. We found that incontinence and body image was associated with sexual dysfunctions; other risk factors remained unknown. Despite regular contact with health care professionals, women rarely get any information about postpartum sexual health issues. The high prevalence of dysfunctions indicates the need for further investigation to address other risk factors and proper counselling of women after childbirth.

Keywords: body image, postpartum, sexual dysfunction, urinary incontinence

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Authors: Rossella Marzullo

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Family plays a central role in the Calabrian criminal organization, which draws its strength from blood ties and gender stereotypes that still impose a strong verticalization of intra-family relationships for the benefit of men. However, female figures are of great importance in the organizational structure of the 'Ndrangheta families, despite the fact that they appear to be formally suffocated by the culture of gender subordination still strongly present in the archaic world of criminal organizations. And this is so much true that over time, the women of the 'Ndrangheta have added to the function of ‘internal containment’, the increasingly explicit function of intermediaries in the ‘external’ activities of the clan. But what happens in the 'Ndrangheta if women break the bond and decide to speak? The results are shocking. When a woman starts talking to ask the institutions for help, the system ‘goes crazy’, because the woman is considered the means of consolidating and transmitting family codes: she educates, forges, holds the structure together. If a woman from the 'Ndrangheta decides to speak out and get out of the family bottlenecks of the clan, she does not exclusively destroy the family; she destroys the system. This happens because, while not playing the same roles as men within organizations, women carry out support activities as intermediaries for the circulation of communications, thus ensuring the operability of the gang in practice and on a daily basis. Crossing the border means breaking the bonds of belonging, thus questioning one's own identity and reconstructing it according to other points of reference. How much these disruptive choices are feared by the men of the 'Ndrangheta has been seen in the dramatic stories of Lea Garofalo and Maria Concetta Cacciola: the fear of the breaking of the family pact, of the earthquake that arises from within, has marked their fate of death, useful both to stop the judicial action and to recompose the organization's estate under the aegis of terror. With physical, psychological violence, underhanded torture, and moral blackmail, the men of the mafia family tried to heal the shock caused by the voices of women, relying on violence and yet another attempt to subordinate them. This proves that the 'Ndrangheta is really afraid of them. The female voices of the 'Ndrangheta, who have shaken a consolidated and considered intangible system, represent the anti-'ndrangheta par excellence; in their choices, there is an even stronger desire to break with the mafia world.

Keywords: families, gender, ‘Ndrangheta, stereotypes

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Authors: Oyedele Ogundana, Amon Simba, Kostas Galanakis, Lynn Oxborrow

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The debate about factors influencing the business growth of women-owned businesses has been a topical issue in business management. Currently, scholars have identified the issues of access to money, market, and management as canvasing factors influencing the business growth of women-owned businesses. However, the influence of motherhood (household/family context) on business growth is inconclusive in the literature; despite that women are more family-oriented than their male counterparts. Therefore, this research study considers the influence of motherhood factor (household/family context) on the business growth of women-owned sewing businesses (WOSBs) in Lagos, Nigeria. The sewing business sector is chosen as the fashion industry (which includes sewing businesses) currently accounts for the second largest number of jobs in Sub-Saharan Africa, following agriculture. Thus, sewing businesses provide a rich ground for contributing to existing scholarly work. Research questions; (1) In what way does the motherhood factor influence the business growth of WOSBs in Lagos? (2) To what extent does the motherhood factor influence the business growth of WOSBs in Lagos? For the method design, a pragmatic approach, a mixed-methods technique and an abductive form of reasoning are adopted. The method design is chosen because it fits, better than other research perspectives, with the research questions posed in this study. For instance, using a positivist approach will not sufficiently answer research question 1, neither will an interpretive approach sufficiently answer research question 2. Therefore, the research method design is divided into 2 phases, and the results from one phase are used to inform the development of the subsequent phases (only phase 1 has been completed at the moment). The first phase uses qualitative data and analytical method to answer research question 1. While the second phase of the research uses quantitative data and analytical method to answer research question 2. For the qualitative phase, 5 WOSBs were purposefully selected and interviewed. The sampling technique is selected as it was not the intention of the researcher to make any statistical inferences, at this phase, rather the purpose was just exploratory. Therefore, the 5 sampled women comprised of 2 unmarried women, 1 married woman with no child, and 2 married women with children. A 40-60 minutes interview was conducted per participants. The interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. Thereafter, the data were analysed using thematic analysis in order to unearth patterns and relationships. Findings for the first phase of this research reveals that motherhood (household/family context) directly influences (positively/negatively) the performance of WOSBs in Lagos. Apart from a direct influence on WOSBs, motherhood also moderates (positively/negatively) other factors–e.g., access to money, management/human resources and market/opportunities– influencing WOSBs in Lagos. To further strengthen this conclusion, a word frequency query result shows that ‘family,’ ‘husband’ and ‘children’ are among the 10 words used frequently in all the interview transcripts. This first phase contributes to existing studies by showing the various forms by which motherhood influences WOSBs. The second phase (which data are yet to be collected) would reveal the extent to which motherhood influence the business growth of WOSBs in Lagos.

Keywords: women-owned sewing businesses, business growth, motherhood, Lagos

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