Objectives: To compare pain control during cervical dilation between two paracervical block (PCB) techniques among women undergoing first trimester surgical abortion. Our research group established the benefit of a specific PCB technique: 20mL 1% buffered lidocaine (2mL at tenaculum site, 18mL paracervical at 4-sites), with a 3 minute wait prior to cervical dilation (PCB 20/4/3). ...Read more >

Background: Abortion stigma is a complex issue, and understanding its manifestation and perpetuation is challenging. However, abortion stigma may have profound social and health consequences for women and it is important for us to better understand it. When faced with unplanned or unhealthy pregnancies, fear of stigma may prevent women from seeking early safe abortions, ...Read more >

Objective: To determine whether manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) or electric vacuum aspiration (EVA) improves physicians’ ability to accurately identify products of conception (POC) in abortions at less than 6 weeks’ gestation. Methods: 498 pregnant women presenting for surgical abortion with mean gestational sac diameter of

Compared to their heterosexual peers, sexual minority (i.e., lesbian and bisexual) girls and women are particularly vulnerable to having poor reproductive health. Our study team has recently documented that sexual minorities are less likely to receive preventative care like Pap tests and more likely to experience a teen pregnancy. We have shown that these disparities ...Read more >

Objectives: Evidence suggests that over-the-counter access to oral contraceptives may improve contraceptive access and use among adult women. Teenagers may particularly benefit from this approach, as they experience disproportionately high rates of unintended pregnancy and face unique challenges accessing contraception. However, limited research has focused on teenagers and over-the-counter access. The aims of this study ...Read more >

Objective: To describe the effectiveness of funic potassium chloride (KCl) injection for fetal demise at the time of intact dilation and evacuation, and compare outcomes for patients undergoing intact versus standard dilation and evacuation. Methods: We reviewed medical records of patients who underwent dilation and evacuation at 20 weeks’ gestation or greater from February 2016 ...Read more >

Background: Measurement of sensitive behaviors is often limited by high levels of underreporting due to stigma and concerns about privacy. Abortion in particular is notoriously difficult to measure. Validation studies in the US find that up to 70% of abortions are not reported via traditional surveys. This study implements a novel method to estimate the ...Read more >

Objectives: To test the association between having an abortion and subsequent depression, in a nationally representative and longitudinal dataset, controlling for pre-pregnancy depression. Methods: Data from four waves of the National Longitudinal Study on Adolescent Health were utilized. Multivariate logistic regression models were employed to test the relationship between having an abortion and subsequent depression. ...Read more >

The family planning research program at Oregon Health & Science University provides a unique and diverse opportunity for junior investigators to be involved in both basic and clinical investigation. As someone who has been the beneficiary of excellent mentoring and a mentored scholar award (K12), I have had a long-standing commitment to mentoring students, residents, ...Read more >

Epilepsy, a poorly understood and often stigmatized disorder, affects more than one million women and girls in the US, making it the most common neurological disorder in females of reproductive age. The disorder is characterized by the occurrence of seizures, which increase the risks of morbidity and mortality and decrease quality of life. For this ...Read more >