{"id":52218,"date":"2014-09-30T05:25:43","date_gmt":"2014-09-30T05:25:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4cd.e16.myftpupload.com\/?p=52218"},"modified":"2014-09-29T20:35:04","modified_gmt":"2014-09-29T20:35:04","slug":"iuds-implants-best-birth-control-for-teen-girls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2014\/09\/iuds-implants-best-birth-control-for-teen-girls\/","title":{"rendered":"IUDs, implants best birth control for teen girls"},"content":{"rendered":"
Majority of teenagers use condoms as their primary\u00a0method of birth control, but\u00a0long-acting contraceptives\u00a0such as\u00a0intrauterine devices should be the “first-line” of contraceptives in preventing teen pregnancy,\u00a0according to new\u00a0recommendations<\/a>\u00a0from the\u00a0American Academy of Pediatrics.<\/p>\n For the first time, the organization recommends\u00a0that pediatricians must discuss\u00a0long-acting reversible contraceptives\u00a0before other birth control methods for teens, citing the\u00a0“efficacy, safety and ease of use” of\u00a0long-acting reversible contraception, such as IUDs and progestin implants.<\/p>\n In the guidelines\u00a0published Monday in the journal Pediatrics<\/a>, the AAP also recommends\u00a0that pediatricians must encourage condom use, which reduces the risk of sexually-transmitted diseases, for every sexual act.<\/p>\n The last set of recommendations from the AAP came in 2007. The new guidelines, taken as a set of best practices for pediatricians\u00a0to consider adopting, follow other groups suggesting similar counseling for teens.<\/p>\n In 2012,\u00a0the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists suggested<\/a>\u00a0that doctors should encourage\u00a0teens to use long-acting contraceptives, or LARC\u00a0methods.<\/p>\n Mary A. Ott, who helped write the AAP guidelines, said in an interview that major organizations and agencies are increasingly suggesting long-acting contraceptives for teens, partially due to a\u00a0“decade of data suggesting that LARC [methods] are\u00a0safe in teenagers\u00a0and they are the most effective tools we have to prevent pregnancy.”<\/p>\n IUDs are small,\u00a0T-shaped devices that, once inserted into the uterus by a doctor, can prevent pregnancy for up to 10 years with a failure rate of about 0.8 percent,\u00a0according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>.<\/p>\n Implants, thin rods inserted under the skin on the upper arm, release progestin and last for about three years, with a failure rate of 0.05 percent.<\/p>\n Birth control pills have a failure rate of 9 percent, and male condoms have an 18 percent failure rate,\u00a0according to the\u00a0CDC.<\/p>\n Condoms remain the most popular form of birth control for teenagers; 52 percent of female teens said condoms were used the last time they had sex, while about 31 percent said they used birth control pills.<\/p>\n Twelve percent said they used other hormonal methods, and 20 percent used condoms and a hormonal method, according\u00a0to a 2006-2010 Health and Human Services survey<\/a>.<\/p>\n Just 4.5 percent of female teens use long-acting devices,\u00a0according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists<\/a>.<\/p>\n High condom use is partly due to cost and the ease of access (teens don’t need to see a doctor\u00a0to get a condom, for example).<\/p>\n Indeed, cost and access to health-care providers can make\u00a0it more challenging for teens\u00a0to be able to use\u00a0LARC methods, said Ott, the doctor who helped write the AAP guidelines. For instance,\u00a0IUDs can cost anywhere from $500 to $1,000 up front,\u00a0according to Planned Parenthood<\/a>.<\/p>\n LARC methods can be more cost-effective over time, Ott said. She pointed to a project in St. Louis, where teens were more likely to choose long-acting methods once\u00a0cost and access weren’t issues.<\/p>\n But misconceptions can also discourage LARC use by teenagers. The ACOG wrote that\u00a0doctors’ concerns about long-acting contraceptives serve as\u00a0barriers to access.<\/p>\n “Families and young people are concerned about safety and these are medical\u00a0devices and medications, so they have side effects,” Ott said. “But I always remind families when I’m counseling them that all methods of contraceptives are safer than\u00a0pregnancy.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Source:\u00a0washingtonpost.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Majority of teenagers use condoms as their primary\u00a0method of birth control, but\u00a0long-acting contraceptives\u00a0such as\u00a0intrauterine devices should be the “first-line” of contraceptives in preventing teen pregnancy,\u00a0according to new\u00a0recommendations\u00a0from the\u00a0American Academy of Pediatrics. For the first time, the organization recommends\u00a0that pediatricians must discuss\u00a0long-acting reversible contraceptives\u00a0before other birth control methods for teens, citing the\u00a0“efficacy, safety and ease of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":52219,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[15],"yoast_head":"\n