In a recent review of the literature on douching practices among young women, Simpson et al. documented that there have been an increasing number of studies characterizing women who have ever douched. Findings from this review indicate that African-American women overwhelmingly report douching at least once in their lifetime. Other studies have also documented a [...]

Continue reading " Characterization of Frequent Douchers Attending: DISCUSSION "

Characteristics of the study sample are presented in Table 1. Of the 115 women interviewed, most were of childbearing age, never married, unemployed and earned low income. Reasons for clinic attendance were as follows: 59% (68) attended the clinic for a general check-up; 17% (20) had accompanied a relative to his or her appointment; 9% [...]

Continue reading " Characterization of Frequent Douchers Attending: RESULTS "

Setting and Participants The pilot study was conducted at a clinic located in South Central Los Angeles that provides primary and reproductive healthcare to predominantly African-American and Latina women: 59% African-American, 23% Latina, 13% Asian, 4% other and 1% white. The clinic serves over 3,600 female patients annually. Previous researchers have found that douching behavior [...]

Continue reading " Characterization of Frequent Douchers Attending: MATERIALS AND METHODS Study "

INTRODUCTION Vaginal douches are the second leading feminine hygiene product sold in the United States. Nationally, 16% of adolescent girls aged 15-19 years and 28% of those aged 20-24 years practice douching. Douches remain popular, despite the fact that the practice of vaginal douching has been linked to bacterial vaginosis, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), infertility, [...]

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