Awareness, acceptability and clinical outcome of post-placental insertion of intrauterine contraceptive device in Marathwada region, India (original) (raw)

Objective: Despite contraception becoming widely available, there is poor acceptance of contraceptive methods either because of ignorance or fear of associated complications. The Marathwada region is an economically backward area of the Maharashtra state in India with a large number of floating populations. Consistent use of family planning methods is difficult in such populations. Post-placental insertion of intrauterine contraceptive device (PPIUCD) has huge potentiality and scope in the Marathwada region. Therefore, our study aimed to assess the awareness, acceptability and clinical outcomes of PPIUCD in a tertiary care hospital. Study design: This was an observational study conducted in the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Government Medical College and Hospital, Aurangabad between January 2015 and December 2015. Subjects were 1944 women visiting the antenatal clinic. A preformed and predesigned questionnaire was applied to determine if these women were aware of the PPIUCD. Acceptability was defined as the number of antenatal women who agreed to undergo insertion of PPIUCD. The primary outcome was safety assessed by pain, bleeding, infection, perforation, expulsion rate, and removal rate. Results: Of 1944 women, only 78(4%) were aware of the PPIUCD. The overall acceptability was found to be 25%. Approximately 37% of women had complications. Not a single woman suffered from uterine perforation. The expulsion and removal rates were 9.2% and 10.2%, respectively. Conclusion: The PPIUCD seems to be a safe, effective option for spacing pregnancies as well as limiting the family size; it can be a useful contraceptive tool for migrant populations. Implications: The Marathwada region in India is an economically backward area with a large number of floating populations. Consistent use of family planning methods is difficult in such populations. The PPIUCD has huge potentiality and scope in the Marathwada region and seems to be a useful contraceptive tool for migrant populations.