Author(s): Eda CANGÖL, Nevin Hotun ŞAHİN, Seda SÖGÜT
he aim of this study was to determine the opinions of the women about the applications of gender of the baby before pregnancy and pregnancy. A descriptive study. Three Family Health Centers of biggest districts of Istanbul. It includes 279 women over 18 years accepted to involve in the study. Data was gathered via face to face interviews by using questionnaire. After the participants were informed about the research, the Informed Consent Form on the front of the questionnaire was signed and the volunteers were taken. The data collection form took approximately 10-15 minutes. The data were evaluated with% (percentage) and chi-square test by using SPSS 16.0 package program. Thirty six percent of participants were between 18-24 year old. Most of the participants (78/28%) were primary school graduates. Nineteen (7%) of women know any practice to select the gender of baby before pregnancy, only 4(1%) applied any method and only 4(1%) believe that this practice worked. Twenty four (9%) know any method to early determine the gender during the pregnancy, 2(1%) women applied a practice and believe that they benefitted. One hundred and four participants (37%) reported that they wanted the gender of their first baby to be female. Among those who want to have more than one child, 138(49%) did not select any gender preferences. The number of those who prefer to have equal numbers of female and male children was 106 (38%). Those who prefer to have only male child (n=6;2%), and who would prefer to have more male child than female (n=5;%2) were in minority. Most participants (n=250;90%) expressed that they wouldn’t want to have a paid service to select the gender of their children to be born. Sixteen percent (n=45) of participants would prefer a free service to select their infant’s gender. Fifty two of participants (19%) would use a possible medicine, if any, to help selection of their infant’s gender, and 33(12%) would use a test recognizing the gender early in pregnancy. Those who would think of ending the pregnancy due to the gender were 4(1%). Among those who would use it if a paid service would be/would have been offered to select the gender of their first child, 4(13%) would select male gender, and 19(18%) female gender.(P=0.002,χ²=12,976).The difference was found statistically significant. In comparison of those who would use it for their first child if any medication would be have en present for pre-pregnancy gender selection 31(30%) would prefer female gender, and only 9(28%) male gender. The difference was found statistically significant (p=0.000,χ²=20,356). It was found that the demand of participants would be low for methods and services to select the gender of fetus before or during the pregnancy.
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