Morbidity Profile of Adolescent Girls in Urban Slums of Guwahati City, Assam

Abstract

Context/Background: Adolescent period is a stage of transition from childhood to adulthood when the maximum amount of physical, psychological and behavioural changes takes place. Adolescents continue to suffer from an array of morbidities like iron deciency anaemia, menstrual problems, malnutrition etc. Aims/Objectives: To estimate the morbidity prole and to determine the association of socio-demographic risk factors with morbidity prole among adolescent girls in urban slums of Guwahati city. Methodology: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among adolescent girls residing in the urban slums of Guwahati city. Atotal of 400 adolescent girls participated in the study after due inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data was collected using a pre-tested and pre-designed interview schedule and results were analyzed using SPSS package (version 23). Results: The proportion of adolescent girls with morbidity was found to be 78.5%. Among the various morbidities, anaemia (41.2%) and menstrual disorders (40.8%). A signicant association between socioeconomic factors and morbidity was seen. Conclusions: Preventable morbidities like anaemia continue to be a burden among this sub-group of the general population and socioeconomic factor was found to play a contributory role. Thus, primordial interventions like sensitization and health education must be strengthened so that these health problems can be reduced