Factors influencing women's satisfaction with birth control methods

Objectives: To study the extent to which variation in satisfaction with a birth control method is explained by variation in perceived physical and psychological effects. Methods: A population survey among 1466 German women was carried out. Within the overall sample, 1303 women had ever used oral contraceptives, 996 had relied on condoms, 342 had ever used intrauterine devices (IUD), 428 had used natural family planning and 139 women were sterilized. For each method a woman had ever used, she answered questions about satisfaction with the method, concerns about getting pregnant or suffering health risks during use, case of use, changes in sexual relationship, relationship with the partner and mood. Past and current users of oral contraceptives and IUDs and sterilized women additionally reported changes in menstrual bleeding. Results: Variation in satisfaction was, for a large part, explained by variation in health concerns among oral contraceptive users, by variation in perceived changes in the quality of the sexual relationship among condom users, by perceived ease of use among IUD users and sterilized women, and by variation in pregnancy concern among natural family planning users. Conclusion: Counselling about these perceived experiences is most likely to result ill greater satisfaction and therefore improved compliance.