comparison of continuation rates and reasons of discontinuation for cyclofem and depot -medroxyprogesterone acetate in rural areas of east azerbaijan province, iran

objective: in this study continuation rate and reasons for discontinuation of depot-medroxyprogestrone acetate (dmpa)and cyclofem have been compared. materials and methods: a retrospective cohort study was conducted with 422 women (202 cyclofemand 220 dmpa users)who had started using the methods 12-24 months before the study in east azerbaijan health houses. data were collected by reviewing the records and interview with the clients and analysed using kaplan-meier and cox regression. results: the 3, 6, 9, 12 months continuation rate were 56%, 37%, 30%, 27% respectively for cyclofem versus 75%, 59.5%, 48%, 42.5% for dmpa. menstrual changes were reported significantly more by the dmpa users than the cyclofem users (85% vs. 73%, p=0.008) as the main reason for the discontinuation, the difference mainly reflected of amenorrhea (50% vs. 23%, p=0.003). none of dmpa users and 11% of cyclofem users claimed frequency of visits and lack of method supplies as their main discontinuation reason. conclusion: discontinuation rate was high for the both methods but it was higher for cyclofem.the common side effects mentioned as the main reasons for discontinuation of the both methods are not health threatening. therefore, health care providers may help to improve their continuation rate by appropriate consultation.