International Family Planning Perspectives articles from June 2007

International Family Planning Perspectives archives from June 2007

In this issue.(Editorial)
June 1, 2007... What does the level of service use indicate about family planning and maternal and child health programs? One might assume that widespread use of services is strong evidence that a program is doing a good job of offering wanted services,...

More needs to be done to reduce child mortality.(UPDATE)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... Child mortality rates in many countries have not been going in the right direction, according to a report entitled State of the World's Mothers 2007: Saving the Lives of Children Under 5. (1) Each year, more than 10 million children die before...

Male condom failure is reduced by counseling.(UPDATE)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... Counseling on how to properly use condoms may help reduce rates of breakage and slippage, according to a condom acceptability study conducted between July 2002 and September 2004 at an STI clinic in Kingston, Jamaica. (1) Among the sample of...

Men and women accurately assess their HIV status.(UPDATE)(human immunodeficiency virus)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... Respondents' reports of their HIV status are generally accurate, according to a study conducted between April and December 2004 among men and women aged 15 or older in rural Malawi. (1) Of the 2,299 respondents who estimated their likelihood of...

Postpartum counseling on contraception works, too.(UPDATE)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... Counseling women postpartum about using lactational amenorrhea as a contraceptive method may convince them to accept the method. (1) As part of a cross-sectional study conducted at a public hospital in Leon, Mexico, 1,490 women who delivered...

Smoking Linked to HIV infection.(UPDATE)(human immunodeficiency virus)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... Smoking tobacco may increase the risk of becoming infected with HIV, but it does not appear to be related to the progression from HIV infection to AIDS. (1) In a review of the research literature, researchers identified 15 articles on smoking...

Bleeding patterns in long-term ring use acceptable.(UPDATE)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... Menstrual bleeding patterns associated with long-term use of the contraceptive vaginal ring are considered acceptable by most women, according to a study conducted at a gynecology clinic in Sao Paulo, Brazil, between April 2004 and January...

Condom program needed along African highway.(UPDATE)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... As many as 2,700 new HIV infections could be prevented if condom use could be raised to 90% among female sex workers and their trucker clients along the trans-African highway between Mombasa and Kampala. (1) As part of a study conducted at 30...

HPV vaccine found effective in developing countries.(UPDATE)(human papillomavirus)(Author abstract)(Brief article)
June 1, 2007... A vaccination against four types of HPV--two of which, HPV-16 and HPV-18, are associated with an estimated 70% of cervical cancers worldwide--is highly effective at preventing high-grade cervical lesions. (1) As part of a double-blind trial...

Constrained contraceptive choice: IUD prevalence in Uzbekistan.(ARTICLES)(Intrauterine device)
June 1, 2007... CONTEXT: Because individuals' and couples' needs vary, the availability of a variety of contraceptive choices is a key component of successful family planning programs. Most women in Uzbekistan rely on a single contraceptive method (the IUD),...

HIV/AIDS-related knowledge, attitudes and sexual behaviors as predictors of condom use among young adults in Croatia.(ARTICLES)(human immunodeficiency virus/Acquired immune deficiency syndrome)
June 1, 2007... CONTEXT: Although Croatia is still in an early stage of HIV infection, the rising rates of infection in other central and eastern European countries suggest the need to understand HIV knowledge, attitudes and sexual behaviors among young adults...

Timeliness of contraceptive reinjections in South Africa and its relation to unintentional discontinuation.(ARTICLES)
June 1, 2007... CONTEXT: Research examining hormonal injectable contraceptive continuation has focused on clients' intentional discontinuation. Little attention, however, has been paid to unintentional discontinuation due to providers' management of clients...

Maternal health and care-seeking behavior in Bangladesh: findings from a national survey.(ARTICLES)
June 1, 2007... CONTEXT: Although the reduction of maternal mortality levels is a key Millennium Development Goal, community-based evidence on obstetric complications and maternal care-seeking behavior remains limited in low-resource countries. METHODS:...

Wealth, wealth indices and HIV risk in East Africa.(VIEWPOINT)(human immunodeficiency virus)
June 1, 2007... For nearly two decades, the conviction that poverty fuels the spread of HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa has been ubiquitous among epidemiologists and development workers. (1-3) In 2005, however, a team of epidemiologists (4) published a comment in...

Exclusive breast-feeding is safer than mixed feeding for infants born to HIV-positive mothers.(DIGESTS)(human immunodeficiency virus)(Author abstract)
June 1, 2007... Breast-fed infants who are also given solid foods or milk from formula are at higher risk of HIV infection than those who are exclusively breast-fed, according to a study of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa....

In Tanzania, use of multivitamins reduces risk of low birth weight and maternal anemia.(DIGESTS)(Author abstract)
June 1, 2007... Pregnant, HIV-negative Tanzanian women who are given multivitamins have reduced risks of some adverse perinatal and postnatal outcomes but not others, according to a double-blind, randomized trial. (1) Compared with their counterparts given a...

In rural area of Zimbabwe, casual sex may explain early sex--HIV risk link.(DIGESTS)(human immunodeficiency virus)(Author abstract)
June 1, 2007... In Zimbabwe's rural Manicaland Province, having premarital sex before age 18 is positively associated with men's and women's lifetime number of partners, number of recent partners and number of current sexual relationships, but also with...

Herpes simplex infection increases HIV risk for men who have sex with men.(DIGESTS)(human immunodeficiency virus)(Author abstract)
June 1, 2007... In a randomized, controlled study of an HIV prevention intervention conducted among high-risk men who have sex with men, HIV infection rates were elevated among those who acquired herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) during follow-up,...

In France, over-the-counter emergency contraception increases access, not risk.(DIGESTS)(Author abstract)
June 1, 2007... Increases in the use of emergency contraception have little apparent effect on indirect indicators of women's risky sexual behavior, according to a study of two cross-sectional surveys of women in France. (1) Use of emergency contraception rose...

In South Africa, some HIV risk factors also predict intimate partner violence.(DIGESTS)(human immunodeficiency virus)(Author abstract)
June 1, 2007... Among young rural South African women, having experienced intimate partner violence is strongly associated with certain risk factors for HIV infection, according to an observational analysis. (1) Women who had experienced such violence were...

Lowest-dose birth control pills provide the greatest ovarian cancer protection.(DIGESTS)(Author abstract)
June 1, 2007... Oral contraceptive use has a well-established association with a reduced risk of ovarian cancer; new evidence from a population-based U.S. case-control study suggests that pills with the lowest hormonal content offer the greatest protection....