To understand the reproductive health status, cognition, and related influencing factors of female college students, and to provide references for reproductive health education and health care guidance in colleges and universities.

From May 9 to 31, 2022, the 18-24 years old female college students were randomly sampled from Guangdong AIB Polytechnic to conduct a questionnaire survey on reproductive health diseases, knowledge of reproductive health care, and medical treatment. The classification description, chi-square test, or Fisher exact test in statistical methods were adopted to analyze the survey results, and the multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to explore the risk factors of reproductive health diseases in the female college students.

The survey showed that 48.28% (602/1 247) of the female college students had ever suffered from diseases related to reproductive health, and 37.69% (470/1 247) had ever suffered from two kinds of gynecological diseases. Drinking, having sexual life, and living in different places were the influencing factors of the number of reproductive health diseases in the students. The risks of the number of reproductive health diseases ≥3 of the female college students who drank alcohol, had sexual life, and came from counties and towns were 1.804, 1.814, 1.789, and 1.814 times higher than those of the students who did not drink alcohol, had no sexual life, and came from cities, respectively, with statistical differences (all P<0.05). Fifty-three point eighty-one percent (671/1 247) of the female college students did not know the breast health care knowledge; 36.57% (456/1 247) did not know it was necessary to prevent reproductive organ injury during sexual life; 29.51% (368/1 247) and 28.95% (361/1 247) did not know the measures to prevent sexually transmitted diseases, contraception, and unwanted pregnancy during sexual life; 44.83% (559/1 247) had not received reproductive health education. The female college students from cities received more reproductive health education than those from counties and towns, suggesting a statistical difference in reproductive health knowledge between the female students from different places (P<0.05); 45.71% (570/1 247) of the female college students chose to observe the situation in treatment of disease. There was no statistical difference in the cognition of medical treatment between the female college students in different grades (P>0.05).

There are reproductive health problems in female college students. Unhealthy habits and premature sexual behaviors both influence reproductive health. Colleges and universities should conduct comprehensive, systematic, and effective reproductive health education and health care guidance in different ways, as well as correct medical guidance.

Female college students; Reproductive health; Influencing factors