Use of period- or fertility-tracking technologies pre- and post-Dobbs

This study aimed to evaluate whether the use of period- or fertility-tracking technologies decreased from pre- to post-Dobbs and to identify user characteristics and changes in reasons for use.

We used data from the Surveys of Women, population-based surveys on reproductive health among self-identified women aged 18 to 44 years, conducted in five states. We compared the prevalence of use of period- or fertility-tracking technologies and reasons for use pre-Dobbs (2018-2019 in Iowa and Ohio; 2019-2020 in Arizona, New Jersey, and Wisconsin) and post-Dobbs (2022-2023 in all five states), overall and stratified by state. To examine the prevalence of use, we adjusted for age, race/ethnicity, education level, and marital status.

Period- or fertility-tracking technology use increased from pre-Dobbs to post-Dobbs overall, with an adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) of 1.20 (95% CI 1.15-1.26). User prevalence increased in four of the five states: Arizona (aPR = 1.17; 95% CI 1.06-1.30), Iowa (aPR = 1.32; 95% CI 1.19-1.47), New Jersey (aPR = 1.21; 95% CI 1.11-1.31), and Ohio (aPR = 1.28; 95% CI 1.16-1.40); prevalence was unchanged in Wisconsin (aPR = 1.06; 95% CI 0.95-1.18). The only change in the reason for use was a decrease in reports of using an app "to become pregnant" post-Dobbs (aPR = 0.85; 95% CI 0.75-0.97).

The increase in period- or fertility-tracking technology use pre- to post-Dobbs may demonstrate that data privacy was less of an issue for users than anticipated.

While the Dobbs decision led legal and data privacy experts, media, and reproductive health advocates on social media to warn period- or fertility-tracking technology users to delete their tracking technology out of concern for data privacy and potential prosecution for abortion, the prevalence of technology users instead increased from pre- to post-Dobbs.