ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this study was to compare the 12-month continuation rate for women who self-injected subcutaneous depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA-SC) with that for women receiving intramuscular depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA-IM) from a provider. This research contributes to the broader goal of identifying solutions to support women to use contraception for their full desired duration. STUDY DESIGN: Participants were clients from 13 clinics in the Dakar and Thiés regions of Senegal who had decided to use injectable contraception prior to enrollment. They chose self-injection of DMPA-SC or provider administration of DMPA-IM. Self-injectors were trained and given three units of DMPA-SC. The provider-injected group received DMPA-IM and returned to the clinics for future injections. We interviewed participants at baseline and after the second, third and fourth injections (the equivalent of 12â¯months of contraceptive coverage). We employed Kaplan-Meier methods to estimate continuation probabilities, with a log-rank test to compare differences between groups. A multivariate Cox regression identified factors correlated with discontinuation. RESULTS: The 12-month continuation rate for 650 women self-injecting DMPA-SC was 80.2%, while that for 649 women receiving DMPA-IM from a provider was 70.4% (p<.01). The difference in continuation between self-injectors and those receiving DMPA from a provider remained significant in a multivariate Cox regression model. The primary reason for discontinuation in both groups (44.7% self-injected; 44.5% provider-injected) was forgetting to reinject or reinjecting late. Fewer women reported side effects in the self-injection group than in the provider-administered group. CONCLUSIONS: The higher 12-month continuation rate for women self-injecting DMPA-SC relative to provider-administered DMPA-IM suggests that self-injection may help prevent pregnancy more consistently and continuously. IMPLICATIONS: Discontinuation of injectable contraception among women wishing to avoid pregnancy may increase unmet need in francophone West Africa. This study showed higher 12-month continuation rates for women who self-injected DMPA-SC, suggesting that this delivery method may improve injectable continuation.