Help Us Protect Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health Care Today!
Mar 03
Most patients can safely begin using hormonal contraception at any point in their menstrual cycle. This article covers an evidence-based, flexible, patient-centered approach to initiating contraception promotes health and enhances patients’ reproductive autonomy. This article was published in American Family Physician in March 2021. It is an update of an article originally published in 2006.…
Feb 16
FDA-approved options for emergency or post-coital contraception include the copper IUD, oral levonorgestrel, and oral ulipristal. For ongoing contraception, more people in the United States choose progestin IUDs over copper IUDs, and previous studies show many patients would select a progestin IUD if it were available as emergency contraception. A new study suggests that progestin…
Jan 19
Creating a supportive, safe, and welcoming clinic environment can help reduce the barriers transgender and gender diverse individuals face when accessing reproductive health care. It is vital to understand the contraceptive needs, fertility, and reproductive goals of each individual when providing contraceptive counseling. Gender-affirming testosterone therapy alone does not prevent pregnancy. We do not know…
Dec 15
Providers may wonder whether or not uterine abnormalities, like fibroids, cervical stenosis, or congenital anomalies would preclude IUD use. For questions like this, the US Medical Eligibility Criteria (US MEC), published by the CDC, is a good resource to turn to. Uterine Fibroids: Category 2-A condition for which the advantages of using the method generally…
Nov 17
Dysmenorrhea causes distress and missed days of school/work for millions of people. What’s the best way to treat it? All hormonal contraceptives can help. The pill, patch, ring, implant, injection, and progestin IUD have evidence for benefit. Continuous use of the pill/patch/ring may provide extra help. The copper IUD, on the other hand, may worsen…
Oct 20
RHAP has embarked on an update of our contraceptive materials. We aim to ensure our materials reflect the latest, best clinical evidence and align our with our core values, in particular patient-centered care. We started with our most general and widely used contraceptive fact sheet, which includes all birth control methods. The old versions organized methods by their…
Sep 15
In May, 2020, the FDA approved a new contraceptive gel containing lactic acid, citric acid, and potassium bitartrate. The brand name is Phexxi. The gel acidifies the vagina, creating an environment that’s hostile to sperm. The gel does not contain nonoxynol 9, the active ingredient in spermicides (which can irritate the vagina and raise the…
Aug 18
In 2018, the FDA approved a one-year contraceptive vaginal ring. It’s a flexible silicone ring that slowly releases segesterone acetate and ethinyl estradiol. The brand name is Annovera. The label instructs patients to insert the ring for three weeks and remove it for one week, repeating the cycle a total of thirteen times before starting…
Jul 21
Coercive contraceptive practices have a long history in the United States, beginning in the era of slavery and extending to forced sterilizations as recent as 2010. Forced contraception has targeted primarily low-income, incarcerated, disabled, Indigenous, Black, and Latinx people. Knowing this horrific history, how can we adjust our contraceptive counseling to avoid any semblance bias…
Jun 16
What’s a simple way to improve adherence to prescription contraceptives? Easy: prescribe a one-year supply. One-year prescriptions also decrease trips to the pharmacy and the health center, thereby promoting social distancing in the time of COVID-19. Dispensing a year’s worth of contraceptives is even better than prescribing a year’s worth. In the states that allow…