Medical-eligibility criteria for contraceptive use

Abstract

Research and development has led to an increasingly wide choice of contraceptive methods in developed countries. However according to the revised version of the WHO document on eligibility criteria for contraceptive use over 350 million couples worldwide do not have access to this full range. Even where contraceptives are supplied there are many logistical social and behavioral obstacles to meeting contraceptive needs. In this perspective the WHO document aims to ensure that contraceptive counseling is based on the best available evidence and to simplify the criteria for eligibility to include only those essential for screening to ensure the safe provision of contraceptive services. It is committed to enabling people to select what is most appropriate to their own circumstances without medical barriers set up through unsubstantiated contraindications or unessential screening tests. The rest of the document consists of a series of helpful tabulations using the proposed simplified four-point scale for practically every contraceptive. Moreover its summary lists other essentials in the provision of contraceptives highlighting how womens choices are commonly limited by direct or indirect social economic and cultural factors.