Ruhun Wasata
Ruhun Wasata is a 2nd year Ph.D. student in Health Behavior, Applied Health Science Department, School of Public Health, Indiana University Bloomington. Her research interests revolve around the sexual and reproductive health of minority women with chronic diseases with specific attention to Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). Her prior research experiences are with Bangladeshi women living in Bangladesh and abroad. Ms. Wasata aspires to be a public health professional after completing her Ph.D. in (minority) women’s health and policy intervention. Later, she wants to join academia as a research faculty. Her end goal is to work towards the improvement of the health-related Quality of Life of South Asian women living in South Asia and abroad.
Prioritizing Pregnancy Over Everything Else: Perception of Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) among Bangladeshi Women
Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a female endocrine disorder, affects 8-20% of women of reproductive age worldwide. However, how PCOS-diagnosed patients perceive it remains unexplored in diverse cultural contexts as the understanding and perception on women’s health in diversified cultures influence the treatment and access to healthcare.
Objectives and Methods: In this qualitative interview study, we assessed the perception of PCOS among Bangladeshi PCOS patients. All 25 participants completed a remote interview using Skype or Phone. The hour-long interviews were transcribed and analyzed with manual coding in thematic analysis.
Results: The major finding was both married and unmarried PCOS-diagnosed women in Bangladesh perceive PCOS through the lens of fertility. Married women with PCOS continue treatment for pregnancy and retention of pregnancy. Most married women become disinterested in continuing the PCOS treatment as soon as they can carry a child to term. Fertility-related anxiety was a major issue among unmarried women and led them to seek more treatments. Furthermore, unmarried interviewees reported their healthcare providers encouraged marriage and conception to ‘fix’ their health condition, increasing related anxiety.
Conclusions: Viewing PCOS only through a fertility-related lens, downplays its other health and well-being effects, such as the increased potential risk for diabetes, even endometrial cancer and thus increase women’s lifetime health risks. A dominant patriarchal culture which views reproduction as a central aspect of women’s role and as a focus of well-being, increases PCOS-diagnosed women’s anxiety and endangers overall health.
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