title: Reproductive health characteristics of urban South Korean women.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To characterize the reproductive health of urban South Korean women of reproductive age.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional online survey on menstrual patterns, sexual behavior, utilization of contraception, and perception of gynecological diseases was administered to 500 women from 15 to 39 years of age in five major cities of South Korea.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the respondents, 76.8 and 25% experienced dysmenorrhea and abnormal uterine bleeding, respectively. Two-thirds of the respondents with dysmenorrhea used analgesics. After analgesics, herbal medicine was the next most commonly used treatment. The mean age of first sexual intercourse was 24.3 years, and 68.8% of the sexually active women used contraception. The most commonly used contraceptive method was the condom (79.7%), and many women (up to 62.2%) demonstrated a distorted understanding of oral contraceptives. Although many women were aware of general gynecological diseases such as cervical cancer (77%), endometriosis (64.4%), and leiomyoma (62.6%), only 22.2% of the respondents had visited a clinic for a gynecological examination, and among those who had visited a clinic, the main reason for the visit was pregnancy (44.1%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this survey provide insight into and allow us to characterize the reproductive health status of urban South Korean women.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Dong-Yun
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Young-Ah
authors.initials: YA
authors.lastname: Koo
authors.forename: Byung-Koo
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Yoon
authors.forename: DooSeok
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Choi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003268:Contraception Behavior / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005831:Genital Diseases, Female / Q000523:psychology; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008598:Menstruation; D017584:Reproductive History; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult