Reasons reported by women for choosing the levonorgestrel intrauterine system as a contraceptive method

To assess the reasons provided by women for choosing the use of the 52 mg levonorgestrel intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) as a contraceptive method.

We conducted a cross sectional study from January 2021 to August 2021 at the University of Campinas, Campinas, SP, Brazil. Women who had never used the 52 mg LNG-IUS and were requesting it for contraception answered a questionnaire asking for their sociodemographic characteristics, the last contraceptive method in use, how they received information about the device, and their main reasons for choosing the method.

We enrolled 516 women, 365 (70.7%) of whom were under the age of 35 and 352 (68.2%) of whom were parous. The last contraceptive method in use was a short-acting reversible method among 387 (80.8%) women, 454 (88%) reported that they wanted to use the IUS only for contraception, and the main source of information was their health care providers. The main reported reasons for choosing the method were because it is safe, has high contraceptive efficacy, and reduces menstrual bleeding.

Health care providers should continue their efforts to provide guidance about the LNG-IUS, including the non-contraceptive benefits, which may contribute to a reduction in the number of unplanned pregnancies.