Reproductive health affects both men and women. Women, however, bear the brunt of reproductive ill heath, not only as a result of their biological status, but also because of a wider social, economic and political disadvantage. There are public health, human rights and economic reasons for investment in reproductive health.

The United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) Article 1 identifies persons with disabilities (PwD) as ‘those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others’ [1].

The US National Health and Social Life survey, which was undertaken in people aged 18–59 years, reported that sexual dysfunction is more prevalent for women (43%) than men (31%) [1]. Another US study of 1,550 women and 1,455 men aged 57–85 years found that the prevalence of sexual activity declined with age (73% among respondents 57–64 years of age, 53% among respondents 65–74 years of age and 26% among respondents 75–85 years of age); women were significantly less likely than men at all ages to report sexual activity [2].

Mood as a category can be subdivided into different states of mind. Bad mood includes an aggressive component such as being angry, frustrated, dissatisfied. Changing mood indicates instability and includes irritability. Depressed mood indicates sadness, lack of motivation, negative outlook and pessimism.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD), also known as chronic renal disease, is a condition characterized by a gradual loss of kidney function over time. It is a common condition often associated with getting older, but it can affect anyone [1]. The causes are manifold, including kidney diseases, diabetic nephropathy and diabetes, hypertension, immunopathologies like systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with and without anti-phospholipid antibodies and kidney transplantation (uncomplicated, complicated).

Different definitions and timelines are given for the various life phases.

At the World Conference on Women in Beijing (1995), Reproductive Health was defined as follows: [1]

Unscheduled bleeding is common during hormonal contraception (HC) use. It increases the likelihood of poor adherence and premature discontinuation of the contraceptive method. In users of combined hormonal contraception (CHC) bleeding disturbances are more frequent in the first months, occurring in up to one third of women in the first cycle and decreasing afterwards to about 5% at the sixth month [1].

Sexual violence against women is one of the most important threats to women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights [1]. In a broader perspective sexual violence against women can be viewed as part of gender-based violence which is defined by the United Nations (UN) as ‘any act … that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life’ [2].