CONTEXT Most U.S. teenage pregnancies are unintended, partly because of inconsistent or no use of contraceptives. Understanding the factors associated with contraceptive use in teenagers' most recent relationships can help identify strategies to prevent unintended pregnancy. METHODS Data on 1,468 participants in Waves 1 and 2 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health who had had...

Using data from the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey 1998, this paper analyzed the duration of use of a contraceptive method and the reasons for its non-use given by former users of contraception. The results showed that the duration of use tended to be short, particularly so for the use of condom and withdrawal. Injectable contraceptives and periodic abstinence tended to be used for relativ...

The basal fungus Allomyces macrogynus (A. macrogynus) produces motile male gametes displaying well-studied chemotaxis toward their female counterparts. This chemotaxis is driven by sirenin, a sexual pheromone released by the female gametes. The pheromone evokes a large calcium influx in the motile gametes, which could proceed through the cation channel of sperm (CatSper) complex. Herein, we rep...

PURPOSE To describe women's condom use and assess predictors of consistent condom use and dual method use in the 6 months after the initiation of oral contraception (OC). METHODS We conducted a planned secondary cohort analysis among women less than 25 years of age initiating oral contraceptives at public family planning clinics in Atlanta, Dallas and New York City, USA, as part of a randomiz...

This study examines the hypothesis that shy, silent users of contraceptives in Pakistan underreport contraceptive usage. Data were obtained from the 1984-85 and 1994-95 Contraceptive Prevalence Surveys, the 1990-91 Demographic and Health Survey, and a Punjab 1993 survey. The data were reorganized to indicate the number of women who were fecund but did not have a birth within the preceding 5 y...

OBJECTIVE To describe the prevalence and correlates of dual-contraceptive methods use (condoms and an effective pregnancy prevention method) and barriers to their use among married persons living with HIV (PLHIV) in India. METHODS We conducted a quantitative survey (93 men, 97 women), 25 in-depth interviews, seven focus groups, and five key informant interviews. RESULTS Prevalence of dual-c...

BACKGROUND Little is known about how condoms and other contraceptives influence women's sexual enjoyment, which could shape use patterns. METHODS Data from an online study of women's sexual health and functioning were used to examine how three categories of contraceptive use - hormonal method only, condoms primarily, and dual use - could help predict decreased sexual pleasure associated with ...

International Family Planning Perspectives c reased condom use an important goal. B e f o re the arrival and increased pre v alence of these re p roductive health pro blems, condoms—the major nonpermanent male method—were promoted mainly as contraceptive devices. Now, they are promoted as both contraceptives and prophylactics. Some see greater use of condoms as leading to increased male partici...

A proper dialogue between spermatozoa and the egg is essential for conception of a new individual in sexually reproducing animals. Ca(2+) is crucial in orchestrating this unique event leading to a new life. No wonder that nature has devised different Ca(2+)-permeable channels and located them at distinct sites in spermatozoa so that they can help fertilize the egg. New tools to study sperm ioni...

BACKGROUND Preventing unintended pregnancies among women living with HIV is an important component of prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT), yet few data exist on contraceptive use among women entering HIV care. METHODS This was a retrospective study of electronic medical records from the initial HIV clinic visits of 826 sexually active, nonpregnant, 18-49-year old women in s...