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Women's Interpretations (women + interpretation)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	75%

Selected Abstracts

Pregnancy Intention and Preterm Birth: Differential Associations Among a Diverse Population of Women

PERSPECTIVES ON SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, Issue 2 2008
Aimee Afable-Munsuz
CONTEXT:,Studies published to date provide mixed evidence on the relationship between unintended pregnancy and preterm birth, and none take into consideration that the meaning of unintended pregnancy may vary across racial and ethnic groups. METHODS:,Data from the 1999,2003 rounds of the Maternal and Infant Health Assessment, a population-based, representative survey of postpartum women in California, were used to assess the relationship between pregnancy intention and preterm birth. For racial and ethnic groups in which an association was found, sequential logistic regression was conducted to further examine the relationship while controlling for socioeconomic characteristics. RESULTS:,In unadjusted results, pregnancy intention was associated with preterm birth among both whites and immigrant Latinas, but not among blacks or U.S.-born Latinas. Among whites, compared with women who reported that their pregnancy was intended, those who were unsure about their pregnancy had elevated odds of preterm birth (odds ratio, 1.4), as did those who reported their pregnancy was unwanted (1.7) or mistimed (1.4). Among immigrant Latinas, those who reported being unsure about their pregnancy were at higher risk of preterm birth than were those who reported an intended pregnancy (1.6). After adjustment for socioeconomic factors, the association remained significant for immigrant Latinas who were unsure about their pregnancy (1.5), but none of the associations remained significant for whites. CONCLUSIONS:,Women's interpretations of questions about pregnancy intention and their social experiences regarding pregnancy intention may vary by race or ethnicity. Studies on the association between pregnancy intention and preterm birth may need to be group-specific. [source]

Communicating breast cancer treatment complication risks: When words are likely to fail

ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL OF CLINICAL ONCOLOGY, Issue 3 2009
Peter H GRAHAM
Abstract Aim: The aim of the present study was to describe women's preferences for the quantification of the risk of a serious complication after regional nodal radiotherapy for breast cancer and women's interpretation of a range of descriptive terms. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted to elicit risk expression preferences and interpretation of words commonly used to describe the risk or frequency of a complication. Two hundred and sixty-two women who had experienced breast-only radiotherapy for early breast cancer at a Sydney teaching hospital were recruited for the survey. Results: The most preferred single method of expression of a risk is descriptive words, for example "uncommon" (52%), followed by percentages (27%) and numbers, for example 1 in 100 (21%). Lower education levels, more advanced cancer stage and older age increase the preference for descriptive words. When considering a serious complication of treatment, such as loss of the function of an arm, the modal interpretation of the descriptors "sometimes" was 1/100 (36% of women), "uncommon" was 1/1000 (35%), "very uncommon" was 1/10 000 (40%), "rare" was 1/10 000 (58%) and "very rare" was 1/10 000 (51%). However, the range of interpretations and the consistent assignment of extremely low frequencies of risk generally render descriptive words without numerical quantification inadequate for informed consent. Conclusion: Although risks of side-effects are often described in words such as common, uncommon and rare, qualification should be provided with numerical values to ensure better understanding of risk. [source]

"Seeing the Baby": Pleasures and Dilemmas of Ultrasound Technologies for Primiparous Australian Women

MEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGY QUARTERLY, Issue 1 2004
Gillian Harris
The practice of obstetric ultrasound scans has undergone significant expansion in the last two decades and is now a standard part of many women's antenatal care in Australia as elsewhere. This article reviews recent evidence about the value of obstetric ultrasound, summarizing debates and contradictions in research literature and practitioner guidelines. Pregnant women's interpretations of the significance of ultrasound are examined through multiple interviews with 34 study participants. We find that ultrasound has become an integral part of women's embodied experience of pregnancy, with its own pleasures and dilemmas. The increasing use the technology has augmented the role of scientific biomedicine in the government of pregnancy. This must be understood in the light of trends toward individualized risk management in which the pregnant woman increasingly takes responsibility for the successful outcome of the pregnancy, in a context where pregnancy is discursively constructed as a risky domain of gendered experience in contemporary Australian society, [discourse, obstetric ultrasound, embodiment, pregnancy, feminist] [source]

What do they know?: a content analysis of women's perceptions of trial information

BJOG : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS & GYNAECOLOGY, Issue 12 2004
Sara Kenyon
Objective To examine interpretations of study information by women participating in ORACLE, a trial of antibiotics in preterm labour. Design Questionnaire survey sent to women recruited to the ORACLE trial. Setting United Kingdom. Population A questionnaire was sent to 3074 ORACLE participants in a purposively selected sample of 55 collaborating maternity units, chosen to reflect a range of regions and of district general and teaching hospitals. Methods Content analysis was applied to verbatim text provided in response to an open question. Responses were also compared with a framework based on key points about the purpose of ORACLE. Closed questions were analysed using descriptive statistics. Main outcome measures Participants' interpretations of the purpose of the study. Results A response rate of 61% was achieved, and 1462 participants provided written answers to a specific question on why the study was being carried out. Content analysis suggested that the information leaflet was highly valued as a source of information about the trial. There was evidence that women's interpretations of the purpose of the trial were not identical to those that the investigators intended. Of the five key points about the trial described in the information leaflet, 400 (27%) participants reported one key point, 550 (38%) two key points, 229 (16%) three key points and 23 (1.5%) four key points. None reported five key points and it was not possible to classify 46 responses (3%). Vague, confused understanding or poor recall were evident in 204 (14%) of responses. Conclusion Although the ORACLE trial was run as a model of good practice at the time, this study suggests that it may not be possible to demonstrate full understanding of trial purpose and design by all participants. Emphasis should be on the provision of full information that involves consumers in its design and evaluation. [source]