240-243 Cushman

Family Planning Perspectives In the early 1990s, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved subdermal contraceptive implants and the injectable contraceptive depot medroxy progesterone acetate (DMPA), adding two long-term methods to the array of contraceptives currently available. A primary concern associated with these highly effective methods is that, as has been documented among women who have been sterilized,1 their use will lead women to decrease condom use. Thus, users of these methods could be placed at increased risk of acquiring sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including AIDS. For example, in a study of early implant acceptors, nearly half of those who had used condoms in the past (21% of the total sample) planned to “rarely” or “never” use them in the future.2 Similarly, a recent longitudinal study of DMPA users revealed that only 18% consistently used condoms.3 Condom Use Among Women Choosing Long-Term Hormonal Contraception