Need For Emergency Contraception Research Articles

Emergency Contraception for Patients Taking Isotretinoin

This Viewpoint explains the need for emergency contraception as the last chance to avoid pregnancy for patients taking isotretinoin.

“A Lot of My Friends Don't Know How It Works”: Student Activists Describe Gaps in College Students' Emergency Contraception Knowledge

IntroductionDespite the high potential need for emergency contraception (EC) among college students, lack of accurate knowledge may decrease the likelihood of its use in this population. We examined knowledge about EC methods, potential outcomes of use, and access among college students in the United States. MethodsWe recruited college students from a listserv devoted to EC campus activism for an online survey about EC knowledge (N = 150) and conducted 24 follow-up in-depth interviews. We describe the share of respondents that correctly answered each question and provide additional context and insight from interview respondents. ResultsGaps in EC knowledge were noted in our sample of college student EC activists. Awareness of different methods of EC was not universal; 38% of the sample was unaware of ulipristal acetate (ella®) and 61% was unaware of the intrauterine device inserted after intercourse as EC. Many respondents also incorrectly perceived additional barriers to acquiring EC such as minimum age or an ID requirement to purchase EC (64% and 49%, respectively). Interview respondents describe how medical providers, such as student health services and pharmacists, can pose barriers to EC access through either their actions or how college students expect they will act. ConclusionsWe document several gaps in knowledge surrounding EC in college students, even in an activist sample. Additional efforts to inform students about the variety of available EC methods and address mistaken perceptions about barriers to access may allow college students to better meet their needs for EC.

Contraceptive needs among newly incarcerated women in a county jail in the United States.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the risk of unintended pregnancy among women during Cook County Jail intake by assessing basic contraceptive history, the need for emergency contraception (EC) at intake, and contraception at release. This is a cross-sectional study of women 18-50 years old at Cook County Jail in Chicago, Illinois from June 2011 through August 2012. The authors administered the survey at the time of intake on 33 convenient evenings. Surveys consisted of multiple-choice close-ended questions administered via interview. Topics included contraceptive use, pregnancy risk and pregnancy desire. The authors computed frequencies to describe the distribution of question responses and used logistic regression modeling to identify factors significantly related to the use of contraception at intake and to the acceptance of contraception at release. Overall, 194 women participated. Excluding women not at risk for pregnancy (4.6 percent currently pregnant, 17.5 percent surgically sterilized/postmenopausal and 4.6 percent using long-acting reversible contraceptives), 73.2 percent of women were at risk for pregnancy ( n = 142) and, therefore, had a potential need for contraception. Among these women at risk for unintended pregnancy, 68 (47.9 percent) had unprotected intercourse within five days prior to survey administration. When asked about EC, most women (81.4 percent) would be interested if available. Additionally, 141 (72.7 percent) of women would be interested in contraceptive supplies if provided free at release. Newly incarcerated women are at high risk for unintended pregnancy. Knowledge about EC and ability to access birth control services are both significantly limited. These conclusions support providing an intake screening in jails to identify women at risk for unintended pregnancy.

Use of emergency contraception among female young adult cancer survivors

To test whether emergency contraception use in reproductive-aged cancer survivors is higher than in the general U.S. population and evaluate factors associated with use among survivors. A retrospective cohort study compared emergency contraception use between cancer survivors in the Reproductive Window Study on ovarian function after cancer and in the general population in the 2006-2010 National Survey for Family Growth. In a cross-sectional analysis of survivors, multivariable models were used to test associations between participant characteristics and emergency contraception use. Not applicable. A total of 616 female cancer survivors aged 18-40. None. Self-reported emergency contraception use. The mean age of survivors was 33.4 ± 4.7, at a mean 7.5years since diagnosis. Breast cancer (22%), Hodgkin lymphoma (18%), and leukemia (8%) were the most common cancers. Since diagnosis, 156 (25.3%) used emergency contraception, 60% because of not otherwise using contraception. Age-adjusted prevalence of use was higher in survivors than in the general population (28.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) 24.7-31.9] vs. 12.0% [95% CI 11.1-12.9]). In multivariable analysis among survivors, nonwhite race (prevalence ratio [PR] 1.3, 95% CI 1.0-1.8), breast cancer (PR 0.6, 95% CI 0.4-1.0), partnered relationship (PR 0.6, 95% CI 0.5-0.9), and older age (age 36-40 vs. 31-35; PR 0.7, 95% CI 0.5-1.0) were associated with emergency contraception. Female young adult cancer survivors were significantly more likely to use emergency contraception compared with the general population. Populations including nonwhite survivors have a higher risk, suggesting differences in family planning care. Strategies to improve contraception and decrease the need for emergency contraception are needed.

Usage patterns and attitudes towards emergency contraception: the International Emergency Contraception Research Initiative

Objectives: The aim of the survey was to gain understanding of women’s usage patterns and attitudes towards emergency contraception (i.e., the ‘morning after pill’) and to gain insight into the role and attitudes of pharmacists as providers of emergency contraception.Methods: As part of the International Emergency Contraception Research Initiative, approximately 6500 women (15–49 years) and nearly 500 pharmacists from 14 countries in Western, Central and Eastern Europe, and Central Asia completed questionnaires via web-based interrogation or computer-assisted/paper-assisted personal interviews.Results: Common to almost all countries and cultures was that, while awareness of emergency contraception was high (≥84% of respondents, except in Kazakhstan), usage was generally low (4–18%). In Austria, the Czech Republic, Spain, and the UK, better underlying protection with hormonal contraceptives or male condoms would have meant less need for emergency contraception. In Bulgaria, Lithuania, Romania, and Russia, greater dependence on less reliable contraceptive methods such as calendar + withdrawal was associated with higher use of the emergency contraceptive pill (11–18%) but also with higher abortion rates (19–21%). Overt rejection of emergency contraception in the event of an accident was low, except in countries (e.g., Austria, Poland) where the misperception that it acts as an abortifacient was common. Except for Bulgaria, pharmacists elsewhere tended to have limited knowledge and moralistic attitudes towards emergency contraception.Conclusions: Improved educational efforts, probably country-specific, are required to increase the use of highly effective methods of regular contraception and overcome barriers to acceptance of emergency contraception as a suitable postcoital solution to avoid unwanted pregnancy or abortion.

Use of Withdrawal and Unintended Pregnancy Among Females 15–24 Years of Age

To examine the prevalence of withdrawal (coitus interruptus) use among a cohort of U.S. females aged 15-24 years, to describe characteristics of withdrawal users, and to evaluate whether withdrawal users exhibit a higher risk of unintended pregnancy. We analyzed the 2006-2008 National Survey of Family Growth, estimating with a Cox proportional hazards model the risk of an unintended pregnancy over and up to a 47-month retrospective period among females aged 15-24 years who used withdrawal relative to females who used only other methods of contraception. We also examined correlates of withdrawal use using a logit model. During the study period, 31.0% of females in our cohort used withdrawal. Of withdrawal users, 21.4% experienced an unintended pregnancy compared with 13.2% of females who used only other contraceptive methods (adjusted hazard ratio 1.75, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.23-2.49). Withdrawal users were also 7.5% more likely to have used emergency contraception (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1.57, 95% CI 1.13-2.20). Married females were 14.8% less likely than single females to use withdrawal (adjusted OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.35-0.96). Use of withdrawal as contraception is common and might place females at higher risk of unintended pregnancy. Health care providers should be aware that many patients may use withdrawal, should consider the need for emergency contraception among these females, and should encourage them to use more effective methods of contraception. II.

Study on emergency contraception with Cu T 200 B and 0.75 mg Levonorgestrel (2 doses) using cafeteria approach

Objectives To study the need for emergency contraception (EC) and evaluate the efficacy and side effects of Cu T 200 B and Levonorgestrel (LNG).

A pilot study to assess pregnancy risk and need for emergency contraception in a pediatric emergency department population

A pilot study to assess pregnancy risk and need for emergency contraception in a pediatric emergency department population

Images of American Sexuality in Debates Over Nonprescription Access to Emergency Contraceptive Pills

The debate over emergency contraceptive pill access in the United States revolves around speculations about Americans' sexual lives. The recently released internal U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) memo that expresses fears that adolescents will form "sex-based cults" around emergency contraceptive pills echoes arguments made against the nonprescription switch at the 2003 FDA hearings. In these hearings, opponents argued that nonprescription access would lead to adolescent promiscuity and disease transmission and that adult predators would use the drug to facilitate the sexual abuse of young women. In contrast, proponents of expanded access to emergency contraceptive pills overwhelmingly portrayed their model user as a responsible adult who experiences a torn condom during consensual sex. These imaginations of American sexuality are tied to competing models of the role of medical providers in women's sexual decision making. Opponents of the nonprescription switch argued that women need a learned intermediary, not only to determine their need for emergency contraception, but also to educate them about proper sexual behavior and protect them from abuse. Proponents advocated putting more responsibility for sexual health decision making in the hands of women, not doctors, and complained about the moralizing scrutiny of medical providers. In the absence of nonprescription access to emergency contraception, advance prescription of emergency contraceptive pills can ensure that contraceptive education is not tied to a specific sexual act and therefore not perceived as a judgment about women's sexual decisions. However, advance prescription does not help women who lack access to health care or women who make sexual and contraceptive decisions without consulting physicians.

Knowledge of and need for emergency contraception in an urgent care population

Knowledge of and need for emergency contraception in an urgent care population

Women's Experience and Satisfaction with Emergency Contraception

If any new contraceptive technology is to become a viable option for decreasing unintended pregnancies, women must be willing to use the method and find it acceptable. However, because emergency contraceptive pills have not been widely used, very little is known about this method's acceptability. Telephone interviews were conducted with 235 women who had received emergency contraceptive pills through a demonstration project at 13 Kaiser Permanente medical offices in San Diego to assess women's experience and satisfaction with the pills. More than two-thirds of the women (70%) were using a contraceptive method prior to their need for emergency contraception, and 73% of these users were relying on condoms. When asked about the situation that led to unprotected intercourse, 45% reported that their condom broke or slipped, while 23% said they had had unplanned sex. More than three-quarters of the sample (81%) experienced at least one side effect. The overwhelming majority were satisfied with emergency contraceptive pills (91%) and would recommend them to friends and family members (97%). Just one-quarter of the sample (28%) believed that emergency contraceptive pills should be dispensed over the counter, and an even lower proportion agreed that they should be available from vending machines (6%). Because women were overwhelmingly accepting of emergency contraceptive pills, found them easy to use and did not intend to substitute them for regular contraceptive use, this new method is an important addition to the contraceptive options available to women, providing a way to prevent pregnancy after unprotected intercourse or method failure.

Preventing unwanted pregnancies.

This editorial comments on the recent report of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists on unplanned pregnancy. This report followed up an earlier report which recommended that the NHS make freely available contraceptive services. Even though this came to fruition, abortion rates continued to rise. In 1990, 174,000 legal abortions were performed in England and Wales, of which 33% were women 20 years. The current report reviewed education and contraceptive services with particular emphasis on teenagers. Unwanted teenage pregnancy was attributed to the lack of education on family planning and related issues in schools. The proposal is for a flexible sex education curriculum with specially trained teachers. Curriculum would be established in national guidelines. A suggested improvement was the addition of seminars for parents and school governors on sex education, even though this means competing with GCSE's. The media should take responsibility for focusing on contraception as a benefit if it continues to promote the delights of sexual intercourse. It is pointed out the emergency contraceptive knowledge is poor. A Family Planning Association (FPA) survey reports that only 1 out of 2 pharmacists receives requests about emergency contraception. Another FPA unpublished study shows that 500 out of 1000 women receiving legal abortions did not use any form of contraception before conception. The need for emergency contraception an appropriate clinic facilities is emphasized. The report also strongly disagrees with the closing of clinics which has been ongoing since the 1974 transfer of FPA clinics to the NHS. The district health authorities must function on a restricted budget while general practitioners in FP are paid from unrestricted funds. Community family planning clinics and general practitioners in the NHS differ considerably in the services offered. Practitioners offer oral contraceptives generally, while clinics provide a wide range of methods. NHS family planning services for contraception, sterilization, and abortion must be reoriented. The recommendation is that senior specialists oversee the community clinics and general practices and coordinate the provision for legal abortion. This specialist might serve as a focus of skill and professionalism for coping with changing social values and medical techniques.