Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 16, 2025

A Novel Method for Involving Women of Color at High Risk for Preterm Birth in Research Priority Setting
Published on: January 12, 2018
Contraceptive use among young women in northern Ghana: a community-based study
Reuben N Apambila1, Gerald Owusu-Asubonteng2, Edward T Dassah3
1Bolgatanga Nursing Training College, Bolgatanga, Ghana.
Objective:
The aim of the study was to assess factors influencing contraceptive uptake among young women aged 15-24 years in Bolgatanga Municipal District, northern Ghana.
Methods:
An analytical cross-sectional community-based study was conducted between December 2015 and April 2016. Participants (N = 580) were selected through multistage sampling and interviewed using a pretested structured questionnaire.
Results:
The mean age of the participants was 20.5 years (standard deviation 2.8 years). About a third were less than 20 years old. Contraceptive knowledge was nearly universal (99.7%). About 67% of sexually experienced young women had used contraceptives, but less than a quarter had used long-acting reversible contraception (LARC). Age was the only independent predictor of contraceptive use: women in their 20s were more than twice as likely as adolescents to use contraceptives (adjusted relative risk 2.75; 95% confidence interval 2.04, 3.71; p < 0.001).
Conclusion:
Strategies to improve contraceptive uptake among young people in the municipality should encourage the use of LARC.
Related Concept Videos
Birth Control Methods
Infertility in Females
Endometriosis, a condition characterized by abnormal growth of...
Bias in Epidemiological Studies
Study Designs in Epidemiology
Observational studies are those where the researcher does not intervene but rather observes natural variations. They include cross-sectional, cohort, and...
Hormonal Control of the Ovarian Cycle
Before puberty, the hypothalamus releases GnRH in a low frequency, low amplitude pulsatile manner. This along with the immature hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis activity, results in low estrogen levels and the absence of a fully functional ovarian cycle. At puberty, GnRH secretion increases in both frequency and...
Hormonal Regulation of the Menstrual Cycle
At puberty, GnRH begins a pulsatile release pattern, which triggers the anterior pituitary gland to secrete follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH). The frequency and amplitude of GnRH pulses vary across the menstrual cycle, with faster pulses favoring LH release and slower pulses favoring FSH...

