| The Association of Contraceptive Use, Non-Use, and Failure with Child Health |
| Authors: |
Jocelyn E. Finlay |
| Source: |
International Journal of Child Health and Nutrition, Volume 2 No. 1, Pages 113-134 |
| Topic(s): |
Birth interval
Child health
Contraception
|
| Country: |
More than one region
Multiple Regions
|
| Published: |
JUN 2013 |
| Abstract: |
Objective: To examine the association of contraceptive use in the interpregnancy interval with subsequent child health outcomes in low- and middle-income countries.
Design: A cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative household samples was performed. A modified Poisson regression model was used to estimate unadjusted and adjusted relative risk ratios for high prevalence outcomes.
Setting: Low- and middle-income countries.
Population: Births to women aged 12-49 years for which this birth occurred 12-79 months prior to the interview were included. The sample for analysing infant mortality was comprised of 453,795 children from 35 low- and middle-income countries across 67 Demographic and Health Surveys conducted between 1990 and 2011.
Main Outcome Measures: Infant mortality, stunting, underweight, wasting, diarrhoea, and anaemia.
Results: Contraceptive use in the interpregnancy interval, even if contraceptive failure resulted in birth, had a positive effect on all child health outcomes compared to non-use of contraception in the interpregnancy interval. The positive effect of contraceptive use was the lengthening of the interpregnancy interval, but it also had a direct positive effect on child health, independent of birth interval.
Conclusions: Extending the interval between births had a positive effect on child health outcomes, and contraceptive use had a positive effect on child health independent of the birth spacing effect. Additionally, contraceptive failure did not adversely affect child health outcomes.
Keywords: Contraceptive use, birth interval, child health outcomes, Demographic and Health Surveys, infant mortality |
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