Km. Curtis et al., VISITS TO EMERGENCY DEPARTMENTS FOR GYNECOLOGIC DISORDERS IN THE UNITED-STATES, 1992-1994, Obstetrics and gynecology, 91(6), 1998, pp. 1007-1012
Objective: To assess rates of visits to emergency departments for gyne
cologic disorders among women of reproductive age in the United States
. Methods: Data from the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Sur
vey for 1992-1994 were analyzed to determine rates of visits to emerge
ncy departments among women, ages 15-44 years. Average annual rates pe
r 1000 women were calculated using age, race, and region-specific popu
lation estimates. Rate ratios were used to compare rates among subgrou
ps. Results: Approximately 1.4 million gynecologic visits were made to
emergency departments annually, for an average annual rate of 24.3 vi
sits per 1000 women, ages 15-44 years (95% confidence interval [CI] 22
.0, 26.6). The most frequent diagnoses were pelvic inflammatory diseas
e (average annual rate 5.8, 95% CI 5.0, 6.6), lower genital tract infe
ctions including sexually transmitted diseases (average annual rate 5.
7, 95% CI 4.8, 6.6), and menstrual disorders (average annual rate 2.9,
95% CI 2.3, 3.5). Nearly half of all gynecologic visits resulted in d
iagnoses of genital tract infections. Younger women (ages 15-24 years)
were 2.3 (95% CI 2.0, 2.6) times as likely as older women (ages 25-44
years), and black women were 3.6 (95% CI 2.9, 4.3) times as likely as
white women, to visit emergency departments for gynecologic disorders
. Rate ratios for genital tract infections were 10-20 times higher for
younger black women than for older, white women. Conclusion: Almost h
alf of gynecologic visits to emergency departments were related to gen
ital tract infections, which largely are preventable.