Health Dimensions of Sex and Reproduction

From the health risks of sexual activity to those of pregnancy, abortion and childbirth, reproduction constitutes enormous risks to a woman's health. Ill-health conditions related to sex and reproduction account for 25 per cent of the global disease burden in adult women. In sub-Saharan Africa, they account for over 40 per cent. The catastrophic effects of reproductive ill-health, however, are not limited to women; for infants and adult men, they inflict 25 per cent and 1 per cent respectively of the global burden. This volume offers data and detailed discussions of the epidemiologies of three sexually transmitted diseases, HIV, and five specific maternal conditions, as well as those of congenital anomalies and perinatal conditions. Projections of the HIV epidemic are provided: by 2020 HIV is projected to double to 2.5 per cent of the global disease burden.