Background: Placement of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) immediately postpartum is becoming increasingly popular. This practice provides highly effective contraception, which may be especially beneficial for women with barriers to contraceptive use such as lack of insurance coverage outside of pregnancy or loss to follow-up postpartum. While increasing access to LARC is an important goal, it ...Read more >

Short birth intervals increase risk of low birth weight, preterm birth, neonatal and infant mortality, as well as maternal complications, including third trimester bleeding, postpartum infection, and anemia. To date, research has not reached a consensus on the optimal timing and method to discuss postpartum contraception with patients. Most studies have focused on the postpartum ...Read more >

Pain control is a significant concern for women undergoing surgical abortions with the most of women experiencing at least moderate levels of pain. Intravenous sedation has been shown to significantly reduce pain during these procedures, but the majority of abortion providers use only local anesthesia for pain control. Heat is an effective modality used for ...Read more >

Contraception is a critical component of healthcare for HIV-infected women as it is key to both promoting maternal health and preventing perinatal transmission, yet evidence to direct contraceptive choices in HIV-positive women remains limited. Particular concern exists about potential effects of protease inhibitors, especially ritonavir, on the efficacy of combined oral contraceptives. However, these concerns ...Read more >

In 1951 India became the first country to launch a national family planning program focused on promoting reversible and permanent contraception including financial incentives for both method acceptors and providers. Despite governmental provision of the copper intrauterine device (IUD), oral contraceptive pills (OCP) and condoms at no cost, most Indian women choose permanent sterilization after ...Read more >

Background:  Although post-abortion contraception is known to be acceptable, safe, and effective, many women leave abortion clinics without contraception and are therefore at risk for repeat unintended pregnancy.1-11    Abortion clinic staff and providers often cite cost as a barrier to women receiving immediate post-abortion contraception.12,13  Insurance copayments and out-of-pocket costs have been shown to affect ...Read more >

Background Many studies have been conducted to evaluate pain control options for intrauterine device (IUD) placement. However, few interventions have proven effective at reducing pain, including the NSAID ibuprofen. Prior studies on naproxen sodium, another NSAID, suggest effective pain relief. However, these studies were conducted among women having IUDs inserted that are different shapes and ...Read more >

Offering immediate postpartum contraception is a potential solution to the problem of unintended rapid repeat pregnancies, by providing birth control before a woman resumes sexual activity after delivering a child. There has been increasing interest in this practice over the past decade in the United States. Today, nearly half of states have reformed state Medicaid ...Read more >

Russia is one of the top receiving countries for labor migration, an increasing portion of whom are women. Migrant women struggle to obtain reproductive care. The number of women has persisted around 15% of legally employed migrants in Russia, with estimates ranging as high as 30-35%. As of 2008, over 50% of all labor migrants ...Read more >

Background: More than one-third of women in the US have engaged in heterosexual anal intercourse (HAI). The risk of acquiring HIV per sexual act is estimated to be 18 times higher for receptive anal intercourse than receptive vaginal intercourse; HAI is also associated with lower rates of condom use. Little is known regarding HAI frequency, ...Read more >