Contraception最新文献

Objectives: To describe long acting reversible contraception (LARC) initiation in emergency contraception (EC) visits.

Study design: EC clients age 18-35 years at four Utah family planning clinics between February 2021 and April 2023 chose between oral EC and three LARC options.

Results: Of 2106 EC clients approached, 306 (14.5%) requested LARC and 293 initiated a device: 160 (55%) an etonogestrel implant+ oral levonorgestrel (LNG), 72 (25%) a copper intrauterine device (IUD), and 61 (21%) a 52 mg levonorgestrel IUD (p < 0.001).

Conclusions: In this observational study, one in seven EC clients initiated a LARC method and more frequently selected the etonogestrel implant with oral levonorgestrel over an IUD.

Clinical trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT04678817; registered 12/16/20.

Objective: To explore differences in demographic characteristics and telehealth usability between patients who chose video versus telephone for telehealth contraceptive counseling.

Study design: This was a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort comparing the interpersonal quality of contraceptive counseling between in-person and telehealth visits at a single Title X-funded clinic. Before the clinical visit, a non-clinician counselor provided structured contraceptive counseling based on patients' preferred modality. After counseling, respondents completed an electronic survey which included the Telehealth Usability Questionnaire (TUQ). Post-visit, the counselor evaluated perceived patient engagement. We calculated Area Deprivation Index (ADI) percentiles to characterize neighborhood environment. We compared characteristics between patients choosing video and telephone using Poisson regression and performed analyses stratified by ADI to test for effect modification.

Results: Between March 2021 and June 2022, we enrolled 149 patients in the telehealth group: 146 (98%) were included in the analysis. Seventy percent of respondents chose telephone. Higher ADI, Black race, and lower educational level (<4 years college) were associated with choosing telephone in the unadjusted analysis. However, after stratifying by ADI, only lower educational level remained associated with choice of telephone among respondents from more deprived neighborhoods (aRR 1.46, 95% CI 1.01-2.11). We observed no differences in TUQ scores between respondents choosing telephone and video.

Conclusion: When given the option, more patients selected telephone than video for telehealth contraceptive counseling. No demographic characteristics were associated with choice of telephone among patients with a higher ADI. Offering telephone-based telehealth may improve access for people seeking contraceptive services.

Implications: We found that telephone-based telehealth is preferable for some patients, which may reflect differences in access to or comfort with video technology. We observed that higher ADI, Black race, and lower education level were associated with choice of telephone, although not after stratifying by ADI. Utilization of telephone-based telehealth may improve access for some patients and lead to more equitable-based health care.

Objectives: To understand in-facility follow-up care-seeking behavior among both people who self-managed medication abortions and those who obtained facility-managed care in low-and-middle-income countries. We explore factors that contribute to meeting individual self-reported follow-up care needs, core to person-centered care.

Study design: We conducted a qualitative, codebook thematic analysis of 67 in-depth interviews conducted with people who self-managed medication abortions or obtained facility-managed medication abortion care. We first classified individuals as having their follow-up care needs met (not seeking care when the participant felt confident that additional care was not warranted or desired or receiving care if it was desired) or not. Our a priori analytic domains came from the Anderson model of health services utilization - predisposing, enabling, or need factors (perceived and evaluated need for health services) that contributed to having follow-up care needs met or not. We also describe emergent themes within each domain.

Results: Most participants (n=59, 88%) had their follow-up care needs met; half (n=33, 49%) sought follow-up care in a facility. Prior birth or abortion experiences emerged as predisposing factors for having follow-up care needs met. Having accompaniment support (from activists or hotlines who provide abortion guidance outside of clinical settings), knowing what to expect, and information sources were key enabling factors for having follow-up care needs met. Need factors included flexible follow-up care guidelines. Those who did not have their follow-up care needs met described predisposing negative health system experiences; enabling factors including health system challenges, stigma from providers, and legal risk; and need factors of required follow-up care guidelines.

Conclusions: Medication abortion follow-up care experiences are diverse, and individual needs can be met both in and outside of health facilities. Understanding prior experiences, enabling accompaniment support, and considering flexible follow-up care guidelines can support meeting individual follow-up care needs, which is essential to person-centered abortion care.

Implications: Follow-up care needs, essential to ensuring access to high-quality abortion services, can be met in both self-managed and in-facility medication abortion models. Policies that require follow-up care when it is not needed or desired by the person can reinforce ideas that self-managed abortion is not safe or effective, despite existing evidence.

Objectives: To compare medication abortion (MAB) success in very early pregnancy (VEP) with mifepristone followed by either one or two doses of misoprostol.

Study design: We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of VEP MABs from July 1, 2021 to May 31, 2022 treated with mifepristone 200 mg oral followed by a single dose of misoprostol 800 mcg buccal 24 to 48 hours later and MABs from June 21, 2022 to October 31, 2022 treated with mifepristone 200 mg oral followed by two doses of misoprostol 800 mcg buccal spaced 4 hours apart, with first dose taken 24 to 48 hours after mifepristone. Serum BhCG was collected at the time of mifepristone treatment with additional BhCG collected 48 to 72 hours after misoprostol treatment in both groups. Success was defined as a BhCG decline of ≥50%. MAB failure was defined as ongoing, viable pregnancy determined by follow-up ultrasound or procedural intervention with aspiration.

Results: There were 423 patients in the single-dose misoprostol group and 262 patients in the two-dose misoprostol group. There were no significant differences between the two groups in baseline characteristics. In the single-dose group, 372 (87.9%) were treated successfully; in the two-dose group, 224 (85.5%) were treated successfully. There was no significant difference in MAB success between the groups (p = 0.73).

Conclusions: The addition of a second dose of misoprostol does not improve the success of MAB in VEP.

Implications: Additional research is needed to identify interventions to improve the success of MAB in VEP.

Objective: To assess the prevalence of ever considering self-managing an abortion (SMA) and its associations with experiences of medical mistrust and mistreatment in a nationally representative sample.

Study design: In 2021-22, we conducted a national, cross-sectional, online probability-based survey of US people assigned female at birth ages 15-49. Among those who had ever been pregnant, we ran weighted multivariable logistic regressions to examine whether having had difficulty trusting medical providers and/or experiencing medical mistreatment was associated with SMA consideration.

Results: Of 4260 participants who had ever been pregnant, 5.2% (95% CI, 4.3%-6.3%) ever considered SMA. Additionally, 38.8% (95% CI, 36.8%-40.9%) reported prior moderate medical mistrust; 17.0% (15.4%-18.6%) experienced neglect of symptoms only, and 22.2% (20.6%-24.0%) experienced ridicule or humiliation in a previous healthcare encounter. In multivariable analyses, those who reported prior high medical mistrust had increased odds of considering SMA (aOR=5.2, [95% CI, 2.9-9.2]), compared to those who had no prior medical mistrust. Those who had experienced ridicule or humiliation by healthcare providers had increased odds of considering SMA (aOR=3.8, [95% CI, 2.3-6.1]), compared to those without such experiences. Participants who believed others perceived them as Black or Arab/Middle Eastern, were poor in their youth, or identified as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and other had higher proportions of considering SMA (p-values<0.01).

Conclusions: Experiences of medical mistrust and mistreatment are common and are associated with increased likelihood of considering SMA. Those who identified with a structurally minoritized group were more likely to consider SMA, and those whose "street race" was Arab/Middle Eastern had the highest likelihood.

Implications: If restrictions on abortion continue to increase, individuals may further consider SMA. Our findings suggest a need to create healthcare environments that foster trust and respect, as well as to ensure people have access to safe options for SMA.

Objective: Analyze changes in abortion practices during the early coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Study design: Sites recruited by Society of Family Planning participated in a longitudinal descriptive analysis comprising three surveys between February and October 2020. Average monthly total and medication abortion volume was analyzed by χ² and linear regression.

Results: Total average volume of abortion services did not change among participating sites (p = 0.79). Volume and proportion of medication abortion increased over the study period (p = 0.02, p < 0.01).

Conclusions: The early COVID-19 pandemic marked a shift toward medication abortion.

Implications: Our findings are interlaced in a national trend predating the Dobbs ruling, likely accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objectives: To compare outcomes and characteristics of two cohorts of patients: those receiving medication abortion (MAB) at ≤42 days gestation and those at 43 to 56 days gestation.

Study design: We conducted a retrospective cohort study in 2022, comparing 142 patients accessing MAB at ≤42 days with 200 patients at 43 to 56 days. We sought to detect a 7% difference in MAB success with 80% power and alpha of 0.05. We assessed follow-up responses and unscheduled contacts with the health care system.

Results: Abortion success rates were similar between the ≤42-day and 43 to 56-day groups (94.3% vs 97%, p = 0.226). Those ≤42 days had more unscheduled office visits (13% vs 6%, p = 0.01) but no difference in phone calls or emergency room visits. More patients with successful MAB in the ≤42-day group answered that bleeding (11.7% vs 1.9%, p = 0.006) and cramping (10.5% vs 2.9%, p = 0.035) were not heavier or worse than a period and that they had no pregnancy symptoms prior to the abortion (15.8% vs 6.0%, p = 0.034). Patients ≤42 days gestation less often had a pretreatment ultrasound (48% vs 64%, p = 0.004). Patients without prior ultrasound more often needed uterine aspiration to complete the abortion (6.8% vs 2%, p = 0.027).

Conclusions: Patients undergoing MAB at ≤42 days have similar success rates but more unscheduled office visits, and more ambiguous symptoms when using standardized questions for evaluating abortion success. Clinicians should adapt anticipatory guidance and counseling for this population.

Implications: Access to very early abortion is increasingly relevant as legal restrictions on abortion increase. Earlier gestations may have different responses to standard follow-up questions despite a successful MAB and may have more interactions with the health care system.