Thulaseedharan Jissa Vinoda
Achutha Menon Center for Health Science Studies (AMCHSS), Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, Kerala, India.
Open Access J Contracept. 2018 Jan 5;9:1-10. doi: 10.2147/OAJC.S152178. eCollection 2018.
As in other states of India, female sterilization is the most widely used contraceptive method in Kerala where women have higher levels of education compared to most other states in India. This paper describes the use and preferences of contraceptive methods among young married women in Trivandrum district, Kerala, India.
A community-based cross-sectional survey was carried out among 203 young married women (18-28 years) during January-March 2015 using multistage cluster sampling method. Statistical analysis was mainly descriptive, and chi-squared test was used to test the statistical significance of the relationship between sociodemographic factors and contraceptive use.
The average age at marriage for women was 21.3 years, and 23% of women had more than one child. Current use of any contraceptive methods was 58%. Female sterilization was preferred by 13% and it was significantly higher among women aged 25-28 years than in those aged 18-24 years (20% vs 2.6%, <0.001). Female sterilization was significantly lower among women with higher levels of education than in women with an education level of plus two or below (5.8% vs 19%, =0.006). Women were mostly in favor of female sterilization (91%), and a significantly lower proportion of highly educated women preferred female sterilization than women with an education of 12 years or below (85% vs 95.7%, =0.008).
A considerable number of females in the age group 25-28-years opting for sterilization and the unique preference for female sterilization when the family size is complete show the predominant reliance on female sterilization among young women. Higher education delays sterilization in young women due to delayed marriage and childbirth. Women empowerment, proper information and assuring availability and accessibility to different methods can gradually change the dominant preference for female-oriented permanent method of contraception.
与印度其他邦一样，绝育是喀拉拉邦使用最广泛的避孕方法，该邦女性的受教育程度高于印度其他大多数邦。本文描述了印度喀拉拉邦特里凡得琅地区年轻已婚女性对避孕方法的使用情况和偏好。
2015年1月至3月期间，采用多阶段整群抽样方法，对203名年龄在18 - 28岁的年轻已婚女性进行了基于社区的横断面调查。统计分析主要为描述性分析，采用卡方检验来检验社会人口学因素与避孕方法使用之间关系的统计学意义。
女性的平均结婚年龄为21.3岁，23%的女性育有一个以上子女。当前使用任何避孕方法的比例为58%。13%的女性首选绝育，25 - 28岁女性的这一比例显著高于18 - 24岁女性（20%对2.6%，<0.001）。受教育程度较高的女性中绝育比例显著低于教育程度为高中及以下的女性（5.8%对19%，=0.006）。大多数女性赞成绝育（91%），与受教育12年及以下的女性相比，受教育程度高的女性中赞成绝育的比例显著更低（85%对95.7%，=0.008）。
25 - 28岁年龄段有相当数量的女性选择绝育，以及在家庭规模既定后对女性绝育的独特偏好，表明年轻女性对女性绝育的主要依赖。高等教育由于结婚和生育延迟，推迟了年轻女性的绝育时间。赋予女性权力、提供适当信息以及确保不同避孕方法的可获得性和可及性，可以逐步改变对以女性为主的永久性避孕方法的主导偏好。
