Asian Research Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics

Background: Reduction of maternal morbidity and mortality is hinged on family planning. Pattern of long-acting contraceptive (LAC) uptake at the point of service delivery could be a reflection of state or national indices on contraceptive uptake.

Aim: To determine the uptake and pattern of use of LACs at the Family Planning Unit of the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa.

Methodology: This was a 5-year retrospective descriptive study. Data on clients who had administration of LACs between January 2016 and December 2020 were collected from the family planning clinic record. Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 25.0 was used for data analysis. Frequencies and percentages of categorical variables were determined and Chi-square was used to test significance. A p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results: Two hundred and ninety-five women accepted LAC during the study period, but uptake reduced between 2018 and 2020 from 80 to 41 women. Most of them were aged between 30 and 34 years (37.6%) and multiparous (55.6%). The most common reasons for needing contraceptives were child spacing (55.3%); highest among multiparous women (66.9%) and completed family size (41.0%); highest among grand multiparous women (56.2%). The reason for needing contraceptive had a statistically significant relationship with parity and the choice of LAC (P = 0.001). Jadelle (32.9%) and Implanon (22.4%) were the most preferred LAC.

Conclusion: Jadelle and Implanon were the most common LAC used. Use of the Levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system was non-existent over the 5-year period. The reducing uptake of LACs noted in this study may suggest a general reduction in contraceptive uptake. Parity was significantly related to the reason for needing contraceptives and choice of LAC.