Armenia’s unwanted pregnancy rate remains high

By Grigor Avetisyan

YEREVAN. – Summer is a time for vacations, and it is known that it is also a period for very active sexual relationships.  

During a press conference on Thursday, dermatologist and infection specialist Karen Vardanyan and gynecologist Rusudan Vardanyan spoke about the importance of having safe sex. 

In their words, especially those who offer intimate relations and those who spend their vacations abroad are in the risk group.     

The sexual infection season begins in late August and early September, when many return from holidays. In Armenia, however, this is also linked to another problem: the habit of not using condoms during sex.

“The majority of those that come to see dermatologists [in Armenia] are 18-24-year-old youth. Most of them are reluctant to use condoms because they are uncomfortable to ask for contraceptives in pharmacies,” Karen Vardanyan said.            

In her turn, Rusudan Vardanyan noted that the rate of unwanted pregnancies, due to not using contraception, remains high in Armenia. More than half of the pregnancies in the country are not planned, whereas 15 percent stops an unwanted pregnancy.  

Photo by Arsen Sargsyan