Maternal Contraceptive Use Patterns

At the antenatal questionnaire women were asked if in the month they became pregnant they were using contraception and how regularly. Postnatally women were asked if they were using family planning methods and which methods were being used. Contraceptive methods were classified as modern if they were products or medical procedure that interfere with reproduction from acts of sexual intercourse, therefore condoms, oral contraceptive pills, tubal ligation (postnatally), coil, injectable contraceptives and implants were classified as modern methods. Abstinence and withdrawal methods were considered traditional. Lactation amenorrhea (LAM) was considered traditional as although is a very effective method if practiced correctly, it is well acknowledged that often only a minority of women who report breastfeeding as a method of contraception meet the correct-practice criteria for LAM and this method is not considered effective after the early postpartum period [20 (link)].