IMR Press / CEOG / Volume 40 / Issue 4 / pii/1630389115542-562520057

Clinical and Experimental Obstetrics & Gynecology (CEOG) is published by IMR Press from Volume 47 Issue 1 (2020). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with S.O.G.

Original Research
Unmet needs and knowledge of postpartum contraception in Italian women
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1 Department of Gynecological-Obstetrical and UrologicalSciences, “Sapienza” University of Rome, Rome
2 AIED, Italian Association for Demographic Education, Rome (Italy)
Clin. Exp. Obstet. Gynecol. 2013, 40(4), 514–518;
Published: 10 December 2013
Abstract

Purpose of investigation: Clinic visits during pregnancy and puerperium provide a unique opportunity to counsel women on contraception practices. With the aim of evaluating postpartum contraceptive attitudes among urban women attending an antenatal care center and delivering in the same facility, a structured questionnaire was administered to assess desired and received information on contraception in the postpartum period. Results: A total of 436 consecutive interviews were collected during the study period. Pregnancy was unplanned in 39% of the women interviewed. Overall, 269 women (61.7%) had decided to use a method of family planning during postpartum. Among the 112 women who stated they did not want to use a method during postpartum, almost 50% stated that they “did not think they needed it”, due to a perceived lack of real risk. Of the 436 women interviewed, only 5.5 % women acknowledged that they had received information on contraceptive use. Conclusion: The present study indicates a need for ante- and postpartum counseling of women even in urban areas of Italy.
Keywords
Postpartum contraception
Contraception attitudes
Hormonal contraception
Intrauterine contraception
Contraceptive needs
Contraception unmet needs
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