Rubella seroprevalance among the girls (aged 7-15) in the primary-school period living in low and high socio-economic areas in Denizli, Turkey

Objective: immunity against rubella before women’s reproductive age is a practical strategy to control congenital rubella syndrome (crs). this study was designed to investigate the rubella seroprevalance among the female primary-school students living in low and high socio-economic areas in denizli (turkey). methodology: two hundred seventy seven students were eligible for this comparative cross-sectional study (november 2003). schools and classrooms were randomly included in the sample. the cut off points of blood sample were set as <10 iu negative; ³10 - <15 iu indeterminate; ³15 iu positive. results: study was completed in 235 (84.8%) students. rubella seropositivity was 74.0% (p=0.03). rubella vaccination rate was 14.0% (high ses) and 7.8% (low ses). a significant difference continued among the graders even after multivariable adjustments (p<0.001). conclusion: sporadic rubella vaccinations may not be a right option to control rubella among women in their reproductive age thus active immunization is important for public health in developing countries