Contraceptives Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

This essue have the aim to put clear the mechanism of the pill. It has an anticonceptive effect, no dooubt, but could it have another effect. Why laboratory din´t explain all the effects of the pill. Have they fear, if yes, for what... more

This essue have the aim to put clear the mechanism of the pill. It has an anticonceptive effect, no dooubt, but could it have another effect. Why laboratory din´t explain all the effects of the pill. Have they fear, if yes, for what reason they silenced the abortive effect effects in many cases? We will try to put it as clear as we can.

In this paper, we argue that target-driven population policy enables the return of technical solutions to reproductive health challenges in the form of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC). We examine two Family Planning 2020... more

In this paper, we argue that target-driven population policy enables the return of technical solutions to reproductive health challenges in the form of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC). We examine two Family Planning 2020 (FP2020) commitments related to promotion of the injectable contraceptive Sayana Press and the implant Jadelle. These efforts reintroduce controversial contraceptive methods (Depo-Provera and Norplant); involve public-private partnerships between donors, governments, NGOs and Big Pharma; and facilitate capital accumulation from contraceptive sales in the global South. We employ a demopopulationist lens to highlight the use of neo-Malthusian ideology to justify reducing population growth and engineering population composition. In a geopopulationist frame, Sayana Press and Jadelle reinforce unequal geographies in which the Global North serves as a space of technological innovation and policy-making, and the poorest countries in the Global South, including many in Africa, serve as the laboratory for clinical trials, interventions in fertility, and capital extraction. Finally, the way these contraceptive technologies are promoted harks back to the biopopulationist promise of improving life itself.

In this DifferenTakes, Susanne Schultz and Daniel Bendix trace the efforts by the German government, the pharmaceutical company Bayer, the population lobby, and the Gates Foundation to promote the hormonal contraceptive implant Jadelle.... more

In this DifferenTakes, Susanne Schultz and Daniel Bendix trace the efforts by the German government, the pharmaceutical company Bayer, the population lobby, and the Gates Foundation to promote the hormonal contraceptive implant Jadelle. The authors conclude with a call for activists to fight for contraceptive safety, in the spirit of earlier challenges to implants, like Norplant.

‘Women’s rights are human rights!’ This notion may seem self evident, as the international system for the promotion and the protection of human rights that was installed under the auspice of the United Nations (UN) builds on the idea of... more

‘Women’s rights are human rights!’ This notion may seem self evident, as the international system for the promotion and the protection of human rights that was installed under the auspice of the United Nations (UN) builds on the idea of equality in dignity and rights of men and women. Yet, as was convincingly showed by critics of this system, it is not. In 1993 a lobby of women’s rights activists and organisations from all over the world gathered in Vienna at the World Conference on Human Rights to make clear to the 171 states represented there that the international human rights system ignored blatant human rights violations that occur on a daily basis in the lives of women from all over the world. The states represented at the World Conference recognised this deficiency of the international human rights system and called upon the monitoring bodies of the mainstream international human rights treaties to include the status and human rights of women in their deliberations and findings. This study examines whether two of these monitoring bodies: the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) have taken up this call. It thereby focused specifically on matters that affect women’s physical integrity. The study shows that the HRC and the CESCR make good use of the possibilities within their mandates to address issues that affect women’s physical integrity: they address not only issues like rape and domestic violence, but also for example female genital mutilation, unsafe abortions, and lack of access to contraceptives. It is in this respect interesting to note that the monitoring bodies do not consider abortion to be a violation of any human right, but, on the contrary, recommend states that have general prohibitions on abortion to amend their laws and allow for abortion under certain circumstances. Moreover, the HRC and the CESCR generally formulate obligations for states parties that take into account the gender-specific form, circumstances and consequences of these human rights abuses. But the HRC and the CESCR could and should do more. Only in a few instances do the bodies expressly link issues like rape, female genital mutilation, and trafficking of women to discrimination of women in societies. Hence, the recommendations of the HRC and the CESCR generally do not request the states parties to tackle the root cause of human rights abuses and constraints: the subordinate position of women in society. Further action is required to overcome this deficit. In this, NGOs and academics also have an important role to play, as they should make the bodies aware of the discriminatory background and nature of specific situations and issues and could present them with ideas on how best to tackle these underlying causes. What is clear is that the request of the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights is not a short-term assignment for the monitoring bodies, but rather is a process that will be ongoing for as long as gender inequality exists. The commitment of not only UN agencies, but also academics, and NGOs is required to transform the international system so as to ensure that it fully accommodates and responds to human rights abuses and constraints that are typical of women’s lives, now and in the future

Objective: To compare intra-and postoperative surgical complications of opportunistic bilateral total salpingectomy during postpartum permanent contraception procedures in elective and unscheduled cesarean delivery. Study design: We... more

Objective: To compare intra-and postoperative surgical complications of opportunistic bilateral total salpingectomy during postpartum permanent contraception procedures in elective and unscheduled cesarean delivery. Study design: We conducted a retrospective cohort study (2010-2017) of women who had postpartum permanent contraception procedures during cesarean delivery, and we collected baseline characteristics, scheduling of delivery (elective versus unscheduled), operative time, estimated blood loss (EBL) and surgical complications (bleeding, iatrogenic injury, infection, anemia and relaparotomy). We classified patients according to contraceptive technique: bilateral total salpingectomy, bilateral partial salpingectomy with or without fimbriae, and other methods. Results: Five hundred twenty-eight women underwent postpartum permanent contraception procedures, 245 (46.4%) had bilateral total salpingectomy, 239 (45.3%) had bilateral partial salpingectomy, and 48 (8.3%) underwent other methods. We did not find differences in baseline characteristics, operative time and EBL among postpartum permanent contraception groups. Unscheduled cesarean delivery did not influence the choice of postpartum permanent contraception technique (p=.22). Postpartum permanent contraception-related intraoperative bleeding occurred in 1 (0.4%) and 2 (0.9%) patients, respectively, in bilateral total and partial salpingectomy group (p=.23). Postoperative complications were 13 (5.3%) and 6 (2.5%), respectively, in bilateral total and partial salpingectomy groups (p=.11). Subgroup analysis confirmed no differences for intra-and postoperative complications during unscheduled cesarean delivery. We noted a 4.3-min increase in operative time for total salpingectomy after multivariate analysis (pb.01). Conclusion: At maternal request for postpartum permanent contraception during cesarean delivery, bilateral total salpingectomy can be a safe and feasible method even in case of unscheduled cesarean delivery. Implications statement: Our results suggest that bilateral total salpingectomy during any cesarean delivery may be an acceptable choice for its higher contraceptive efficacy and risk-reduction effect for ovarian cancer, at the price of a small increase in operative time.

Introductory courses dealing with sex, gender and sexuality are usually quite biased, going as far as to deny the reality of biology. Drawing on the Catholic tradition (Aquinas), this article presents an accessible argument aimed at... more

Introductory courses dealing with sex, gender and sexuality are usually quite biased, going as far as to deny the reality of biology. Drawing on the Catholic tradition (Aquinas), this article presents an accessible argument aimed at restoring deliberative balance in the classroom.

Commonly used synthetic or prescribed hormonal drugs are known to interfere with the endocrine system and may have adverse reproductive, neurological, developmental, and metabolic effects in the body. These may also produce adverse... more

Commonly used synthetic or prescribed hormonal drugs are known to interfere with the endocrine system and may have adverse reproductive, neurological, developmental, and metabolic effects in the body. These may also produce adverse effects such as polycystic ovarian disorder, endometriosis, early puberty, infertility or toxicity to gonads, testicular germ cell cancer, breast or prostate cancer, brain developmental problems, and even birth defects. Globally, the emergence of renewed interest in natural products for reproductive health is on the rise, which offers opportunities for new contraceptive developments. The search for alternate, safer contraceptive products or agents of natural origin is of scientific interest. Ayurvedic classical texts offer knowledge and information about the reproductive function and therapeutics including those for enhancement and limiting male and female fertility. Review of ancient, medieval, and recent-including texts on erotica that provide information on approaches and large numbers of formulations and drugs of plant, mineral or animal origin-claimed to have sterilizing, contraceptive, abortifacient, and related properties is presented. Few among these are known to be toxic and few are not so common. However, most of the formulations, ingredients, or modes of administration have remained unattended to, due to issues related to consumer compliance and limitations of standardization and lack of appropriate validation modalities. Several of these ingredients have been studied for their phytoconstituents and for the variety of pharmacological activities. Efforts to standardize several classical dosage forms and attempts to adapt to modern technologies have been made. List of formulations, ingredients, and their properties linked with known constituents, pharmacological, biological, and toxicity studies have been provided in a series of tables. The possible effectiveness and safety of selected formulations and ingredients have been examined. Suggestions based on new drug delivery systems integrated with advances in biotechnology, to provide prospects for new therapeutics for contraception, have been considered. Ayurveda is built on a holistic paradigm of biological entity rather than limited gonadal functions. Graphic presentation of a few carefully chosen possibilities has been depicted. New approaches to standardization and ethnopharmacological validation of natural contraceptive therapeutics may offer novel mechanisms and modalities and therapeutic opportunities to satisfy unmet needs of contraception.

Contraceptive implants are progesterone-only contraception that is inserted subdermally. They are readily reversible with a return to fertility within days of removal. NDHS, (2019) recorded that the unmet need for family planning was... more

Contraceptive implants are progesterone-only contraception that is inserted subdermally. They are readily reversible with a return to fertility within days of removal. NDHS, (2019) recorded that the unmet need for family planning was higher among sexually active unmarried women (48%) than among currently married women (19%). The contraceptive prevalence in Nigeria was 16.6% as against 27% national target and implants accounts for 3.4%. The aim of the study is to investigate into the knowledge, attitude and practice of women of childbearing age towards the acceptance of contraceptive implants in Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State. A descriptive study was conducted on women of childbearing age (15-49 years) in Akungba-Akoko. Simple random technique was used in selecting the 423 respondents. The consent of the respondents were sought before administering the questionnaires. The data was analysed, using the IBM SPSS Statistics version 27.0.1.0. The study showed that 40.67% and 55.32% had secondary and tertiary education respectively. The age of the respondents at first birth was between 15 and 34 years, with the highest between 20-24 years (44.21%), followed by 15-19 years (21.28%). 20.33% were aware of the minimal side effects of contraceptive implants while 79.67% were not. 46.57% knew that contraceptive implants are highly effective while 53.19% did not. 7.57% knew that fertility would be returned immediately after the removal of contraceptive implants whereas 92.43% did not know. The study showed that most of the women who are currently using contraceptive implants did not know much about it Akungba-Akoko. The survey also revealed factors influencing the acceptance of contraceptive implants among women. Recommendations were made to improve the knowledge, attitude and practice of women of childbearing age towards the acceptance of contraceptive implants.

Si les anciens Égyptiens exploitèrent, dès la haute Antiquité, le miel en cuisine, notamment pour adoucir les plats en l’absence de sucre, et en médecine pour ses vertus cicatrisantes et antitussives, ils employèrent également la... more

Si les anciens Égyptiens exploitèrent, dès la haute Antiquité, le miel en cuisine, notamment pour adoucir les plats en l’absence de sucre, et en médecine pour ses vertus cicatrisantes et antitussives, ils employèrent également la production des abeilles à des fins beaucoup plus insolites…

Depot-Medroxyl-Progesterone-Acetate-Subcutaneous/Self Injection (DMPA-SC/SI) is an intentional approach used by the Nigerian government to improve the coverage rate of contraceptives method-mix. In this study, the knowledge, practice, and... more

Depot-Medroxyl-Progesterone-Acetate-Subcutaneous/Self Injection (DMPA-SC/SI) is an intentional approach used by the Nigerian government to improve the coverage rate of contraceptives method-mix. In this study, the knowledge, practice, and determinants of use of DMPA-SC/SI among women in North-Central and SouthWest , Nigeria, was assessed. A cross-sectional health facility study was conducted across four Nigerian states. Structured pretested questionnaires were used to elicit information from 844 women within reproductive age. Twenty focused group discussions and 40 In-depth interviews (IDIs). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the characteristics of the women. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the determinants of the current use of DMPA-SC /SI. Statistical analyses were set at 5%. Recorded voices were transcribed in full and analyzed using literary methods. About 89.5% of respondents reported ever heard family planning; 97.6% reported heard DMPA-SC; 83.2% reported ever use family planning; 95.7% reported current use of family planning; 94.3% reported ever use DMPA-SC, and 46.5% reported ever use DMPA-SC/SI. The reason for the use of DMPA-SC/SI was because it was easy to use, effective and self-administered. The factors that discourage women from using DMPA-SC/SI were mainly fears associated with side effects, for and fear of SI-self-injury. The logistic regression results showed that those residing in a rural part of the country were less likely to use DMPA-SC/SI. The government should scale up this model nationally, including rural and hard-to-reach communities with public awareness programmes, public sensitization, and refresher training to improve on Provider's counselling skills.

This study investigated the socioeconomic determinants of contraceptive use among women of reproductive age in Tarauni local government area of Kano state, Nigeria. The research used descriptive survey design to collect and analyse cross... more

This study investigated the socioeconomic determinants of contraceptive use among women of reproductive age in Tarauni local government area of Kano state, Nigeria. The research used descriptive survey design to collect and analyse cross sectional data from the study population with the aid of structured questionnaire that was validated. The population of this study comprised of Women of Reproductive Age-15-49 living in urban and rural parts of the study area. A total of one hundred and twenty (120) participants, selected through simple and systematic random sampling technique participated in the study. The study data was analysed with SPSS version 20 and presented as frequency tables and simple percentage, while chi-square statistics was used to answer the formulated research hypotheses at a 0.05 level of significance. The findings of this study indicate that religion, cultural norms and occupational status of the woman are strongly associated with the use of family planning by women of reproductive age. However, level of education was not significantly associated with the use of contraceptive in this study. The study recommends that interventions targeting Muslims should recognise the diversity among sects and be more targeted; Family planning messages should target and address cultural beliefs and norms including gender roles that hinder use of contraceptive method among women of reproductive age. Government should provide income generating opportunity for women and expand service delivery points with adequate and affordable products and services to encourage use.

A review of Target Africa by Obianuju Ekeocha, The Imaginative Conservative, April 15, 2021.

This paper takes a media ecological approach to birth control, treating it not simply as a drug or a technology, but as an environment. This environment not only alters sense ratios in individuals who use birth control, but it alters... more

This paper takes a media ecological approach to birth control, treating it not simply as a drug or a technology, but as an environment. This environment not only alters sense ratios in individuals who use birth control, but it alters social relations and expectations across the culture, regardless of whether or not persons use it.

Autor w swoim artykule wychodzi od mesjańskich nadziei związanych z rodzeniem dzieci. Przeciwstawia entuzjastycznemu spodziewaniu się zbawienia związanego z urodzeniem dziecka koncepcję mesjanizmu pustynnego Derridy, czyli oczekiwania... more

Autor w swoim artykule wychodzi od mesjańskich nadziei związanych z rodzeniem dzieci. Przeciwstawia entuzjastycznemu spodziewaniu się zbawienia związanego z urodzeniem dziecka koncepcję mesjanizmu pustynnego Derridy, czyli oczekiwania pozbawionego horyzontu oczekiwania. Następnie ukazuje dziecko, jako niosące wraz ze swoim pojawieniem się obietnicę śmierci, wykorzystuję grecki mit o Kronosie oraza filozoficzne rozważania Georgesa Bataille'a. W kolejnej części Autor koncentruje się na zjawisku utraconych wizji przyszłości, które nazywa obsoletami nowoczesności i stara się wyjaśnić współczesną niechęć do tworzenia idealnego świata jutra. Ostatnią część artykułu stanowi interpretacja "Huby" (2014) w reżyserii Anki i Wilhelma Sasnalów, która staje się w tym kontekście próbą powstrzymywania się od przymusu (re)produkcji.

A pílula anticoncepcional, contraceptivo reversível mais utilizado no Brasil, torna-se, na mídia, motivação para a produção de discursos sobre a mulher. Se sua invenção facultou a dissociação entre a prática sexual e a maternidade,... more

A pílula anticoncepcional, contraceptivo reversível mais utilizado no Brasil, torna-se, na mídia, motivação
para a produção de discursos sobre a mulher. Se sua invenção facultou a dissociação entre a prática
sexual e a maternidade, atualmente o medicamento é considerado nocivo em alguns contextos. A partir
da perspectiva teórica da genealogia, analisamos quais são as invenções possíveis do feminino a partir
dos discursos sobre a pílula hoje. Como metodologia, utilizamos a análise do discurso de reportagens da
revista Veja e de postagens em grupos de contracepção não hormonal no site de rede social Facebook. Os
resultados mostram que, nas matérias, o medicamento aparece como motor de emancipação da mulher;
enquanto nos grupos novos ativismos levantam a bandeira do corpo sem pílula como ação política pela
conquista da liberdade. Concluímos que, no regime de saber-poder contemporâneo, o resgate do corpo
feminino natural se reconfigura como um dispositivo de liberdade frente ao controle da medicalização.

This study examined the effectiveness of contraceptive measures as means of child spacing methods among the civil servants of reproductive age in Ibadan. The research design used was a descriptive research design. A total number of 110... more

This study examined the effectiveness of contraceptive measures as means of child spacing methods among the civil servants of reproductive age in Ibadan. The research design used was a descriptive research design. A total number of 110 senior cadre civil servants and 40 junior cadre civil servants making a total of 150 civil servants were selected using accidental sampling technique. A self-structured questionnaire 'effectiveness of contraceptive measures for child spacing methods among civil servants tagged 'CMCSCS' was used. A validated questionnaire by experts with a reliability level of 0.78 was used. Simple percentages and inferential statistic of t-test was used to test the hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. The findings revealed that the senior cadre civil servants had the knowledge of child spacing from friends, parents and colleagues while the junior cadre identified friends and parents. Very many of the senior cadre used safe periods and withdrawal system among other contraceptives. The results also showed that the major reason why junior cadre space their children was to assist in limiting the size of the family due to their income, while the senior cadre identified many reasons. Further finding showed that there was a significant difference in the type of contraceptive measures used by the senior cadre and junior cadre civil servants. It is recommended that the civil servants should be educated on the need to adopt the effective contraceptive measures.

We estimate the degree to which expanding access to long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) can reduce teen birth rates by analyzing Colorado's Family Planning Initiative, the first large-scale policy intervention to expand access... more

We estimate the degree to which expanding access to long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) can reduce teen birth rates by analyzing Colorado's Family Planning Initiative, the first large-scale policy intervention to expand access to LARCs in the United States. Using a difference-indifferences approach, we find that the $23M program reduced the teen birth rate in counties with clinics receiving funding by 6.4 percent over five years. These effects were concentrated in the second through fifth years of the program and in counties with relatively high poverty rates. State-level synthetic control estimates offer supporting evidence but suffer from a lack of power.

The study reveals the problems and setbacks plaguing the health sector in the North West region with emphasis to infant mortality and maternal health. The health sector like other sectors is divided into a relatively backward rural sector... more

The study reveals the problems and setbacks plaguing the health sector in the North West region with emphasis to infant mortality and maternal health. The health sector like other sectors is divided into a relatively backward rural sector with infrastructural problems geographic and economic problems that limits access to women, children and the sick in general and a relatively developed urban health sector where units are owned by the private and public sectors. Poverty, ignorance, cultural and religious beliefs have been identified among the reasons that limit effective implementation of health programmes even where infrastructure is available. Cultural and religious beliefs including the attitude of men towards family planning discourages full participation by women. But a salient reality about participation has been hampered by exclusion of men from sensitisation because the programmes are only meant for pregnant women: and only those who attend clinics in particular. Thus no mechanism has been developed to educate men and school children who would be future parents to allow them get acquainted with family planning programmes. As a result most men view the concept of family planning as something imposed by government to reduce population which is highly seen as an economic resource in both urban and rural settings. Even though the North West region has been commended among regions which have meet the national targets for reducing infant mortality and maternal health problems, this study views official statistics with contempt and unrealistic to field work evidence in rural and urban areas. The argument projected by this study is that official statistics have been limited to areas where women and infants have access or are financially empowered to attend clinical consultations. These statistics could be reflection of reality if most of the women and children clustered in urban and rural areas have direct access to health units. On the contrary most rural women have no access to healthcare units as a result of environmental and socioeconomic difficulties championed by rural poverty caused by inadequate resources that yield income. The present study draws a vast dichotomy between theory and realities on the field. Thus though official statistics indicate successes for the North West region problems exist that must be tackled through official interventions which could help in increasing access to urban and rural women and children.

Background: Contraceptive use is a central element of quality care in the provision of family planning services and an important dimension of women's reproductive rights. To increase contraceptive coverage, contraceptive use programs... more

Background: Contraceptive use is a central element of quality care in the provision of family planning services and an important dimension of women's reproductive rights. To increase contraceptive coverage, contraceptive use programs should offer a variety of safe, effective, acceptable and affordable. Objective: The main objective of this study is to assess the patterns and determinants of contraceptive method use among females of reproductive age in Kelala town, Northern Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional study with convenience sampling technique was employed. Samples of 267 females of reproductive age were interviewed by using structured questionnaire. Three nurse interviewers were selected and trained from Kelala health center for data collection. Data was analyzed by using SPSS version 16.0 for windows. Results:-From a total of 267women included in the study, 190(71.20%) of them were contraceptive users while 77(28.84%) were non-users. Injectable contraceptive methods were preferred by majority of women 115(43.07%) followed by pills 31 (11.61%) But intra uterine device were used by only few women 13(4.90%). Age, marital status, educational status, occupation, number of living children, frequency of pregnancy, duration of next pregnancy, source of information, knowledge on contraception were found to have significant association with contraception use. Conclusion:-This study addressed that majority of mothers in the study area are using injectable contraceptive methods and the least used was intra uterine device and the permanent contraceptive methods like female and male sterilization was not known and not practiced.

This paper attempted to examine the effects of women knowledge on attitude and family planning approval on contraceptive use of married women. The primary data was collected from Narsingdi municipality and the cluster sampling techniques... more

This paper attempted to examine the effects of women knowledge on attitude and family planning approval on contraceptive use of married women. The primary data was collected from Narsingdi municipality and the cluster sampling techniques had been adopted for collecting the data. Path analysis was used to determine the effects of factors that haveinfluence on contraceptive use. The result showed that the attitude and knowledge on contraception, and family planningapproval has significant effects on the use of contraceptive. The study also revealed that media exposure significantly effects on family planning approval, increase the positive attitude on contraceptive, and significantly increase the knowledge on contraception and STDs diseases. Women education and mass media can also be considered as potential factors to influence the contraceptive use.

over time. This study sought to examine the trends in contraceptive practices among women in reproductive age in a health facility in Ghana in terms of acceptor rates, age at first reporting and couple-years of protection. Methods: The... more

over time. This study sought to examine the trends in contraceptive practices among women in reproductive age
in a health facility in Ghana in terms of acceptor rates, age at first reporting and couple-years of protection.
Methods: The contraceptive data of women were extracted from the registry of a health facility for a three-year
period from 2011 to 2013. Graphs and tables were used to present the trends in the use
of various contraceptive methods for the study period.
Results: Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (Depo-Provera) was the most accepted contraceptive method as
well as the most protective method against unwanted pregnancies for the three-year period. However, male
condom, estradiol valerate/norethindrone enanthate (Norigynon) and pills were the lowest among all the
contraceptives used by women for the study period in terms of acceptance, while intra-uterine device had the
lowest couple-years of protection.
Conclusions: Some contraceptive methods have been consistently under-utilised by women in the catchment
area and needed to be promoted to improve upon the contraceptive use rate.
Keywords: Trends, contraceptive, reproductive age, health facility, Ghana

This study examined the variations in demographic correlates and patterns of contraceptive usage among married women in Nigeria. The data used were the Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) data set series for 1999, 2003 and... more

This study examined the variations in demographic correlates and patterns of contraceptive usage among married women in Nigeria. The data used were the Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) data set series for 1999, 2003 and 2008. Overall, 34,919 women in age group 15-49 years were covered in the ratio of 17:15:69 across the three data set respectively. The data sets were merged into a single file and analyzed using a combination of univariate and multivariate analytical techniques. The findings reflect, among others, a progressive increase in contraceptives usage from 1999 to 2008. The study confirmed among others that educational attainment, usual place of residence and age are universal determinants of contraceptive use while desired number of children could be intermediated with other factors to influence contraceptive use among women of child bearing age in Nigeria. The study recommends further campaign towards increasing usage of contraceptives in order to stem the growth rate of children ever born.

The synthetic progestins, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) and norethisterone (Net) and its derivatives (norethisterone enanthate (Net-EN) and norethisterone acetate (Net-A)), are widely used as contraceptives and in hormone... more

The synthetic progestins, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) and norethisterone (Net) and its
derivatives (norethisterone enanthate (Net-EN) and norethisterone acetate (Net-A)), are widely used
as contraceptives and in hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Several studies have indicated that
synthetic progestins modulate immune function and increase the risk of sexually transmitted
infections. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism of action of MPA and Net, in
particular their regulation of gene expression in the female genital tract, as compared to
progesterone (P4). In the first part of this thesis, the effect of P4, MPA and Net-A on the expression
of the endogenous chemokine genes, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1α and MIP-1β, was
investigated in a human vaginal epithelial cell line (Vk2/E6E7). Quantitative realtime PCR (QPCR)
showed that both P4 and MPA upregulated the TNF-α-induced expression of MIP-1α and MIP-1β
mRNA, while Net-A had no effect. Using siRNA technology, it was found that the responses to P4
and MPA on the MIP-1α gene, but not the MIP-1β gene, are mediated via the glucocorticoid
receptor (GR). In the second part of the thesis, it was investigated whether the HIV-1 accessory
protein, viral protein R (Vpr), could modulate the action of ligands on MIP-1α and MIP-1β gene
expression. QPCR showed that Vpr abrogates the effects of P4 and MPA on the TNF-α induced
expression of MIP-1α and MIP-1β. Silencing the GR with siRNA technology showed that the GR
plays a role in the effect of Vpr on the P4 and MPA-induced expression of MIP-1α. Taken together,
these results show that MPA and Net-A display differential effects on chemokine gene expression in
a human vaginal epithelial cell line. Furthermore, this study shows that Vpr modulates the effects of
MPA bound to the GR. Thus, the results of this thesis provide insight into the effect of synthetic
progestins on the immune response in the vagina, and possibly how HIV-infection may alter these
responses.

What are the characteristics and circumstances of pregnancies men report as unintended in France? Pregnancies reported as unintended were most prevalent among young men with insecure financial situations, less stable relationships and... more

What are the characteristics and circumstances of pregnancies men report as unintended in France? Pregnancies reported as unintended were most prevalent among young men with insecure financial situations, less stable relationships and inconsistent use of contraception or false assumptions about their partner's use of contraception. Efforts to involve men in family planning have increased over the last decade; however, little is known about factors associated with men's pregnancy intentions and associated contraceptive behaviours. The data presented in this study were drawn from the nationally representative FECOND study, a population-based survey conducted in France in 2010. The sample comprised 8675 individuals (3373 men), aged 15-49 years, who responded to a telephone interview about socio-demographics and topics related to sexual and reproductive health. The total refusal rate was 20%. This study included 2997 men, of whom 664 reported 893 recent pregnancies (in the 5 yea...

Contraceptives in family planning are used to control the Background timings between pregnancies. Although the number of those using family planning has increased, determinants of contraceptive use among married women in Indonesia remain... more

Contraceptives in family planning are used to control the Background timings between pregnancies. Although the number of those using family planning has increased, determinants of contraceptive use among married women in Indonesia remain insufficient. This research aimed to identify the factors associated with contraceptive use among married women in Indonesia. This study employed data from the Indonesian Demographic and Methods: Health Survey 2017. We selected 35,621 married women aged 15-49 years. Then, the determinants of contraceptive use among married women in Indonesia were examined by binary logistic regression. Women's age (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR)=0.529; 95% Results: CI=0.470-0.597), the number of living children (AOR=44.024; 95% CI=33.193-58.390), education level (adjusted odds ratio=2.800; 95% CI=2.181-3.594), wealth index (AOR=1.104; 95% CI=0.978-1.246), frequency of watching television (AOR=1.555; 95% CI=1.321-1.829), and frequency of using the Internet (AOR=0.856; 95% CI=0.794-0.924) were significantly associated with contraceptive use among married women. This study highlights the determinants of contraceptive use Conclusions: among married women in Indonesia. Women's age, the number of living children, education level, wealth index, and access to information may influence contraceptive use among these women. This study emphasizes that health education and promotion on the importance of using contraception should be initiated in innovative ways.