Awareness, knowledge, and misconceptions of adolescents and young people regarding long-acting reversible contraceptives: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Kirubarajan, Abirami; Li, Xinglin; Yau, Matthew; Yu, Caberry W.; Got, Tiffany; Li, Qixuan; Huszti, Ella; Leung, Stewart; Thangavelu, Nila; Sobel, Mara

doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2022.03.013

Cited by 9 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 87 publications

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“…Popular posts are presented at the top of the subreddit, and therefore, most seen by people engaging with this community-meaning that this content has the greatest potential to impact both community members and people "lurking" (or reading without actively engaging) on a subreddit. While IUD use has been increasing steadily over the past 15 years (with use among contraceptive users increasing from less than 3% in 2002 to 14% in 2018) [2,3,17] and IUDs are known to be safe and highly effective contraceptive methods [68], research shows that misconceptions and myths about IUDs persist-particularly among young and nulliparous people [69][70][71]. Our findings suggest that descriptive narratives, particularly those related to IUDs, are the most interacted with and have the greatest visibility on r/birthcontrol.…”

Section: Principal Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Language Used in Posts on r/birthcontrol: Case Study Using Data From Reddit Posts and Natural Language Processing to Advance Contraception Research (Preprint)

Pleasants¹,

Ryan²,

Ren³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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BACKGROUND Contraceptive choice is central to reproductive autonomy, and the internet, including online communities like those formed on Reddit, is an important resource for people seeking contraceptive information and peer support. A subreddit dedicated to contraception, r/birthcontrol, provides a platform for people to share narratives, offering real-time insights in contraceptive decision-making processes and use experiences. OBJECTIVE This study explored use of r/birthcontrol, from the inception of the subreddit through the end of 2020, to describe the online community, identify distinctive interests and themes based upon the textual content of posts, and identify and explore the content of posts with the most user engagement (i.e. ‘popular’ posts). METHODS Data were obtained from the PushShift Reddit API from the establishment of r/birthcontrol to the start date of this analysis (July 21, 2011-December 31, 2020). User interactions within the subreddit were analyzed to describe use of this community over time, specifically the commonality of use based on the volume of posts, the length of posts (character count), and the proportion of posts with any and each flair applied. ‘Scores’, or upvotes minus downvotes serving as a proxy for the popularity of each post, were used to determine ‘popular’ posts on r/birthcontrol (posts with 9 comments and a score of ≥3). TF-IDF analyses were run on all posts with flairs applied, posts within each flair group, and popular posts within each flair group to characterize and compare distinctive language used in each group of posts. RESULTS There were 105,485 posts to r/birthcontrol during the study period, with use of the subreddit increasing over time. The majority of posts were exclusively textual content (96%), had comments (86%), and had a score (96%). Posts averaged 731 characters in length, with a median of 555 characters. Within the timeframe that flairs were available on r/birthcontrol (since February 4, 2016), users applied flairs to 78% of posts with increasing use over time. “SideEffects?” was most frequently used flair among all posts (40% of posts), while “Experience” and “Side Effects” were most frequently applied among popular posts (31% and 29%, respectively). TF-IDF analyses of all posts showed interest in contraceptive methods, menstrual experiences, timing, feelings, and unprotected sex. While n-gram results for posts with each flair varied, the contraceptive pill, menstrual experiences, and timing were discussed across flair groups. Among popular posts, IUDs and contraceptive use experiences were often discussed. CONCLUSIONS This study provides insights into how r/birthcontrol has been used as a resource for contraceptive information and support since 2018 and presents a case study of how public health researchers can use Machine Learning methods to study social networking sites, contributing to and expanding public health research and discourse.

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Section: Principal Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Language Used in Posts on r/birthcontrol: Case Study Using Data From Reddit Posts and Natural Language Processing to Advance Contraception Research (Preprint)

Pleasants¹,

Ryan²,

Ren³

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Popular posts are presented at the top of the subreddit, and therefore, most seen by people engaging with this community—meaning that this content has the greatest potential to impact both community members and people “lurking” (or reading without actively engaging) on a subreddit. While IUD use has been increasing steadily over the past 15 years (with use among contraceptive users increasing from less than 3% in 2002 to 14% in 2018) [ 2 , 3 , 17 ] and IUDs are known to be safe and highly effective contraceptive methods [ 68 ], research shows that misconceptions and myths about IUDs persist—particularly among young and nulliparous people [ 69 - 71 ]. Our findings suggest that descriptive narratives, particularly those related to IUDs, are the most interacted with and have the greatest visibility on r/birthcontrol.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Future research on the use of r/birthcontrol and social networking sites for contraception more generally should explore what misconceptions are commonly described and how they diffuse within communities. For prospective users, misinformation and misconceptions about contraceptive methods are known to be widespread, including those relating to the perceived safety and efficacy of certain methods [69][70][71]79]. While misconceptions about contraception are known to shape contraceptive decision-making and use [44,80,81], the impacts of web-based contraceptive misinformation on users are not well understood.…”

Section: Strengths Limitations and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring Language Used in Posts on r/birthcontrol: Case Study Using Data From Reddit Posts and Natural Language Processing to Advance Contraception Research

Pleasants¹,

Ryan²,

Ren³

et al. 2023

J Med Internet Res

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Background Contraceptive choice is central to reproductive autonomy. The internet, including social networking sites like Reddit, is an important resource for people seeking contraceptive information and support. A subreddit dedicated to contraception, r/birthcontrol, provides a platform for people to post about contraception. Objective This study explored the use of r/birthcontrol, from the inception of the subreddit through the end of 2020. We describe the web-based community, identify distinctive interests and themes based upon the textual content of posts, and explore the content of posts with the most user engagement (ie, “popular” posts). Methods Data were obtained from the PushShift Reddit application programming interface from the establishment of r/birthcontrol to the start date of analysis (July 21, 2011, to December 31, 2020). User interactions within the subreddit were analyzed to describe community use over time, specifically the commonality of use based on the volume of posts, the length of posts (character count), and the proportion of posts with any and each flair applied. “Popular” posts on r/birthcontrol were determined based on the number of comments and “scores,” or upvotes minus downvotes; popular posts had 9 comments and a score of ≥3. Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF) analyses were run on all posts with flairs applied, posts within each flair group, and popular posts within each flair group to characterize and compare the distinctive language used in each group. Results There were 105,485 posts to r/birthcontrol during the study period, with the volume of posts increasing over time. Within the time frame for which flairs were available on r/birthcontrol (after February 4, 2016), users applied flairs to 78% (n=73,426) of posts. Most posts contained exclusively textual content (n=66,071, 96%), had comments (n=59,189, 86%), and had a score (n=66,071, 96%). Posts averaged 731 characters in length (median 555). “SideEffects!?” was the most frequently used flair overall (n=27,530, 40%), while “Experience” (n=719, 31%) and “SideEffects!?” (n=672, 29%) were most common among popular posts. TF-IDF analyses of all posts showed interest in contraceptive methods, menstrual experiences, timing, feelings, and unprotected sex. While TF-IDF results for posts with each flair varied, the contraceptive pill, menstrual experiences, and timing were discussed across flair groups. Among popular posts, intrauterine devices and contraceptive use experiences were often discussed. Conclusions People commonly wrote about contraceptive side effects and experiences using methods, highlighting the value of r/birthcontrol as a space to post about aspects of contraceptive use that are not well addressed by clinical contraceptive counseling. The value of real-time, open-access data on contraceptive users’ interests is especially high given the shifting landscape of and increasing constraints on reproductive health care in the United States.

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“…Adding to this, a notable proportion of these women also manage chronic conditions, potentially leading to the misconception that such health issues influence their fertility to the extent that contraception becomes unnecessary [46]. This specific misconception is widespread in Bangladesh, particularly among those who are illiterate and homemakers, and it contributes to the prevailing dynamics within this demographic [8].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploration of Modern Contraceptive Methods Using Patterns among Late Reproductive Aged Women in Bangladesh

Rana,

Alam,

Hassen

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Background: In light of the increasing population of late reproductive-aged women (aged 35 and above) within the broader demographic of reproductive-aged females, the concern surrounding their contraceptive considerations has escalated to a point of critical importance. This study aims to examine the trends and determinants of modern contraceptive practices among late reproductive-aged women in Bangladesh. Methods: A total of 17,736 women aged 35 and more were included in the analysis, utilizing data from three consecutives Bangladesh Demographic and Health Surveys conducted in 2011, 2014, and 2017-18. The outcome variable was the use of modern contraceptive methods (yes or no). The explanatory variables encompassed survey years, individual characteristics of the women, as well as characteristics of their partners and the community. To examine the association of the outcome variable with the explanatory variables, a multilevel logistic regression model was used. Results: Approximately 54% of women aged 35 and older do not utilize modern contraceptive methods, and there have been no significant shifts in their usage observed over the survey years. The probability of using modern contraceptive methods exhibited a notable decline in relation to increasing age, the educational level of women's partners, and their categorization within the richer or richest wealth quintile. Conversely, women with higher education, increased exposure to mass media, and residing in the Dhaka or Rajshahi division displayed an elevated likelihood of embracing modern contraceptive methods. Conclusion: The study highlights the relatively stable adoption of modern contraceptive methods among women aged 35 or older in Bangladesh, despite their increasing representation within the population. This raises concerns about the elevated risk of unintended pregnancies and shorter birth intervals, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions to address the specific needs and preferences of this demographic

show abstract

Awareness, knowledge, and misconceptions of adolescents and young people regarding long-acting reversible contraceptives: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Cited by 9 publications

References 87 publications

Exploring Language Used in Posts on r/birthcontrol: Case Study Using Data From Reddit Posts and Natural Language Processing to Advance Contraception Research (Preprint)

Exploring Language Used in Posts on r/birthcontrol: Case Study Using Data From Reddit Posts and Natural Language Processing to Advance Contraception Research (Preprint)

Exploring Language Used in Posts on r/birthcontrol: Case Study Using Data From Reddit Posts and Natural Language Processing to Advance Contraception Research

Exploration of Modern Contraceptive Methods Using Patterns among Late Reproductive Aged Women in Bangladesh

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