What do patients want to know about contraception and which method would they prefer?

Abstract

The small number of women who use long-term contraception is in clear contrast to the fact that many women want to have a very safe but also behavior-independent method.

Millennials and contraception: why do they forget? An international survey exploring the impact of lifestyles and stress levels on adherence to a daily contraceptive regimen

“…The TANCO study found that nearly half of German women using a combined (n ¼ 10,461) or progestogen-only (n ¼ 922) contraceptive pill reported missing at least one pill during the previous 3 months (48% combined pill, 46% progestogen-only pill). Of those aged 20-29 years, the overall figure was 47% [12]. In an interview-based study of 1978 US women at risk of unintended pregnancy, Frost et al [10] found that 45% of 18to 24-year-old and 34.5% of 25-to 44-year-old oral contraceptive pill users reported missing at least one pill during the previous 3 months.…”

“…Obstetrician-gynaecologists, general practitioners and nurses should be aware of typical adherence to daily contraceptive pill regimens among millennial womenwhich have been shown to be overestimated by health care providers (HCPs) [12] and ensure each contraceptive counselling session includes a discussion around potential barriers to adherence. Unless prompted, young women may be unlikely to discuss such areas, relying on their HCP their key influencerto guide them.…”

“…Unless prompted, young women may be unlikely to discuss such areas, relying on their HCP their key influencerto guide them. In the TANCO study, 82% of women said their HCP was the most important person to them on matters involving contraception, compared with just 10% stating their partner [12].…”

“…The Thinking about Needs in Contraception (TANCO) study, which surveyed 18,521 women in Germany visiting their gynaecologist, also showed declining use of contraceptive pills with age. Among 14-to 19-year-olds, 86% were using a combined pill compared with just 38% of those aged 30-39 years [12].…”

“…In Europe, these figures are 45 and 64%, respectively. Almost half of unintended pregnancies occur as a result of inconsistent or incorrect contraceptive use [10], a worrying fact considering that younger women are more likely to use contraceptive pills (which depend on user adherence for effectiveness) compared with older women [11,12]. A US survey of 5601 women revealed that 47.3% of 15-to 24-year-old respondents were using a contraceptive pill, compared with 25.0% of 25-to 34-year-olds and 12.4% of 35-to 44-year-olds [11].…”