Knowledge of emergency contraception and predictors of its use among female undergraduates in two Nigerian universities

Abstract

Background: Unintended pregnancies contribute to the high burden of unsafe abortion, maternal deaths and morbidities among undergraduates.

Objective: To assess the determinants of good knowledge and evaluate the trends in the practice of Emergency Contraception (EC) among female undergraduates.

Method: This was a cross sectional study involving four hundred and twenty female undergraduates from two universities in Ibadan, Nigeria. Participants were recruited from their hostels and classrooms. Data collection was done using self-administered questionnaires and good knowledge was defined as three correct answers to five questions testing knowledge. The questionnaires also addressed their practices of EC. The data was stored on the computer, cleaned and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. Statistical significance was set at p <0.05.

Results: Two hundred and fourteen (51.0%) participants were aware of EC and the common sources were friends (43.4%), media (42.9%) and pharmacies (42.0%). One hundred and sixty-four participants (39.1%) had good knowledge of EC. Participants in the age group 20-24 years, second year of study, those who were aware of EC and had ever used EC were associated with good knowledge. Less than half (48%) of the sexually active participants used EC in the past six months and Levonogestrel (51%) was the commonest EC used. Menstrual irregularity and abdominal pain were the major side effects of EC.

Conclusion: The practice of EC is poor and with poor knowledge demonstrated among female undergraduates. There is therefore the need to improve information and access to EC in the university community.