Prevalence of emergency contraceptive pill use among Spanish adolescent girls and their family and psychological profiles

Antonia Jiménez-Iglesias,Francisco Rivera,Carmen Moreno,Irene García-Moya

doi:10.1186/s12905-018-0560-x

Antonia Jiménez-Iglesias, Francisco Rivera + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-018-0560-x

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Abstract

BackgroundAdolescent girls’ family context and psychological characteristics play important roles in their sexual behavior, including the use of the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP). This study aims to (1) determine the prevalence of ECP use among girls who have had sexual intercourse and (2) comparatively analyze their family and psychological profiles according to whether they have used ECPs.MethodsThe sample of 1735 Spanish girls aged 15 to 18 came from a representative sample of the 2014 edition of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study. Of this sample, 398 girls had sexual intercourse and reported their ECP use. Data collection for the HBSC study was performed through an online questionnaire to which adolescents responded anonymously in school. Data analyses were descriptive and bivariate and were performed with the statistical program IBM SPSS Statistics 23.ResultsThe results demonstrated that 30.65% of girls who had sexual intercourse used ECPs. Noticeable differences in paternal knowledge and communication with the father were observed between girls who used the ECP at least once and those who did not use it. In contrast, differences between girls who used the ECP once and those who used it twice or more were pronounced with regard to parental knowledge, communication with parents, maternal affection, life satisfaction, sense of coherence and depression.ConclusionsThis work demonstrates a high prevalence of ECP use and a more positive family and psychological profile for girls who used ECP once compared with those who used it twice or more.

Highlights

Adolescent girls’ family context and psychological characteristics play important roles in their sexual behavior, including the use of the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP)
This work had two aims: (1) to examine the prevalence of ECP use in adolescent girls who have had sexual intercourse and (2) to analyze the family and psychological profile of girls who have used the ECP at least once compared with girls who have never used it as well as of girls who have used the ECP once compared with girls who have used it twice or more
This work reports that the prevalence of ECP use is high among Spanish girls aged 15 to 18 years who have had sexual intercourse and presents a more precise and positive image of these girls

Summary

Introduction

Adolescent girls’ family context and psychological characteristics play important roles in their sexual behavior, including the use of the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP). In certain Spanish regions, ECP use has no cost for users in public health centers, or its cost is partially or completely refunded if it is purchased with a prescription in pharmacies [3]. This makes it more accessible, especially for the most vulnerable populations, such as adolescent girls, women of low socio-economic status and immigrants [4]. Many experts assert that access to ECPs must be straightforward for younger girls but that it is necessary to properly inform them beforehand regarding their use [2, 5]

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