Factors Related to Genital Hygiene Behavior Among Female Underwent Treatment at Dr. Moewardi Hospital Surakarta, Indonesia: A Case-Control Study

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background: Maintaining genital cleanliness is very important for women because intimate organ problems can cause female tract infections. This study aimed to find out the factors associated with genital hygiene behavior in women. Methods: A case-control study was carried out in female underwent treatment at Dr. Moewardi Hospital Surakarta, Indonesia, from December 2017 to February 2018. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 178 participants, who consisted of 56 cases and 122 controls. The dependent variable was genital hygiene behavior. The independent variables were stress, exposure to social media regarding genital hygiene, environmental sanitation, husband’s education, and support. Logistic regression was employed for data analysis. Results: Genital hygiene behavior increased with exposure to social media related to genital hygiene (OR= 9.20; 95% CI= 3.87 to 21.87, p<0.001), good environmental sanitation (OR= 5.16; 95% CI= 2.19 to 12.14, p<0.001), high husband’s education (OR= 6.49; 95% CI= 2.23 to 18.91, p=0.001) and support (OR= 2.88; 95% CI= 1.24 to 6.67, p=0.013). While women who experienced psychological problems such as stress decreased genital hygiene behavior (OR= 0.25; 95% CI= 0.94 to 0.71, p=0.009). Conclusions: Genital hygiene behavior in women increases with exposure to social media related to genital hygiene, adequate environmental sanitation, high husbands’ income, and support. In contrast, stress decreases women’s behavior in practicing genital hygiene. Keywords: Genital hygiene behavior, social media, environmental sanitation, stress, husband’s education, and support. Corresponding author: Afriza Umami, MPH. Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Szeged, Szeged, Dóm tér 10 H-6720, Hungary. E-mail: umami.afriza@med.u-szeged.hu DOI: https://doi.org/10.26911/the7thicph.05.27