Consistency of condom use among users of injectable contraceptives

Use of condoms for protection against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) was examined over a nine-month period among 536 women from 17 clinics in southeastern Texas who had selected the injectable depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) as a contraceptive. Among women who were using condoms prior to receiving DMPA, nearly half said they never or rarely did so after initiating DMPA use; only 18% of all women in the study used condoms consistently while relying on DMPA. Factors associated with consistent condom use were being black (odds ratio of 2.0), being unmarried (odds ratio of 2.2), having a history of STD infection (odds ratio of 1.8), having previously used condoms (odds ratio of 2.7) and having no interest in future childbearing (odds ratio of 1.8). Our data suggest that the majority of users of injectables may not be protected from exposure to the human immunodeficiency virus and other STDs.