The 1996 Uzbekistan Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) is a nationally representative survey of 4,415 women age 15-49. Fieldwork was conducted from June to October 1996. The UDHS was sponsored by the Ministry of Health (MOH), and was funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The Institute of Obstetrics and Gynecology implemented the survey with technical assistance from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) program. The 1996 UDHS was the first national-level population and health survey in Uzbekistan. It was implemented by the Research Institute of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan. The 1996 UDHS was funded by the United States Agency for International development (USAID) and technical assistance was provided by Macro International Inc. (Calverton, Maryland USA) through its contract with USAID. OBJECTIVES AND ORGANIZATION OF THE SURVEY The purpose of the 1996 Uzbekistan Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) was to provide an information base to the Ministry of Health for the planning of policies and programs regarding the health of women and their children. The UDHS collected data on women's reproductive histories, knowledge and use of contraception, breastfeeding practices, and the nutrition, vaccination coverage, and episodes of illness among children under the age of three. The survey also included, for all women of reproductive age and for children under the age of three, the measurement of the hemoglobin level in the blood to assess the prevalence of anemia and measurements of height and weight to assess nutritional status. A secondary objective of the survey was to enhance the capabilities of institutions in Uzbekistan to collect, process and analyze population and health data so as to facilitate the implementation of future surveys of this type. MAIN RESULTS Fertility Rates. Survey results indicate a total fertility rate (TFR) for all of Uzbekistan of 3.3 children per woman. Fertility levels differ for different population groups. The TFR for women living in urbml areas (2.7 children per woman) is substantially lower than for women living in rural areas (3.7). The TFR for Uzbeki women (3.5 children per woman) is higher than for women of other ethnicities (2.5). Among the regions of Uzbekistan, the TFR is lowest in Tashkent City (2.3 children per woman). Family Planning. Knowledge. Knowledge of contraceptive methods is high among women in Uzbekistan. Knowledge of at least one method is 89 percent. High levels of knowledge are the norm for women of all ages, all regions of the country, all educational levels, and all ethnicities. However, knowledge of sterilization was low; only 27 percent of women reported knowing of this method. Fertility Preferences. A majority of women in Uzbekistan (51 percent) indicated that they desire no more children. Among women age 30 and above, the proportion that want no more children increases to 75 percent. Thus, many women come to the preference to stop childbearing at relatively young ages when they have 20 or more potential years of childbearing ahead of them. For some of these women, the most appropriate method of contraception may be a long-acting method such as female sterilization, However, there is a deficiency of both knowledge and use of this method in Uzbekistan. In the interest of providing couples with a broad choice of safe and effective methods, information about this method and access to it should be made available so that informed choices about its suitability can be made by individual women and couples. Induced Aboration : Abortion Rates. From the UDHS data, the total abortion rate (TAR)the number of abortions a woman will have in her lifetime based on the currently prevailing abortion rateswas calculated. For Uzbekistan, the TAR for the period from mid-1993 to mid-1996 is 0.7 abortions per woman. As expected, the TAR for Uzbekistan is substantially lower than recent estimates of the TAR for other areas of the former Soviet Union such as Kazakstan (1.8), Romania (3.4 abortions per woman), and Yekaterinburg and Perm in Russia (2.3 and 2.8, respectively). Infant mortality : In the UDHS, infant mortality data were collected based on the international definition of a live birth which, irrespective of the duration of pregnancy, is a birth that breathes or shows any sign of life (United Nations, 1992). Mortality Rates. For the five-year period before the survey (i.e., approximately mid- 1992 to mid- 1996), infant mortality in Uzbekistan is estimated at 49 infant deaths per 1,000 births. The estimates of neonatal and postneonatal mortality are 23 and 26 per 1,000. Maternal and child health : Uzbekistan has a well-developed health system with an extensive infrastructure of facilities that provide maternal care services. This system includes special delivery hospitals, the obstetrics and gynecology departments of general hospitals, women's consulting centers, and doctor's assistant/midwife posts (FAPs). There is an extensive network of FAPs throughout rural areas. Nutrition : Breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is almost universal in Uzbekistan; 96 percent of children born in the three years preceding the survey are breastfed. Overall, 19 percent of children are breastfed within an hour of delivery and 40 percent within 24 hours of delivery. The median duration of breastfeeding is lengthy (17 months). However, durations of exclusive breastfeeding, as recommended by WHO, are short (0.4 months). Prevalence of anemia : Testing of women and children for anemia was one of the major efforts of the 1996 UDHS. Anemia has been considered a major public health problem in Uzbekistan for decades. Nevertheless, this was the first anemia study in Uzbekistan done on a national basis. The study involved hemoglobin (Hb) testing for anemia using the Hemocue system. Women. Sixty percent of the women in Uzbekistan suffer from some degree of anemia. The great majority of these women have either mild (45 percent) or moderate anemia (14 percent). One percent have severe anemia.
