Contraceptive behaviour of Christian and Muslim teenagers at the time of abortion and post-abortion in Thrace, Greece

Abstract

Objectives: The aims of the study were to compare the contraceptive behaviour of Christian and Muslim adolescents who had an abortion in Thrace, Greece, and to examine whether extensive contraceptive counselling at the time of abortion modified their subsequent contraceptive practices.

Methods: Adolescents, aged 14–19 years, who had undergone an elective abortion in our department, were included in a prospective 12-year study. Extensive contraceptive counselling was offered before discharge from the hospital. Attitudes to contraception were assessed by means of a simple questionnaire at the time of abortion and at 1-year follow-up.

Results: The study population comprised of 95 Christian Orthodox adolescents (Group A) and 79 Muslim adolescents (Group B). At the time of abortion, contraceptive behaviour differed significantly between the two groups (p = .004). Contraceptive methods used in Group A in comparison with Group B were as follows: oral contraceptives (27.4% vs. 12.7%), condoms (22.1% vs. 38.0%), interrupted coitus (18.9% vs. 20.3%), periodic abstinence (16.8% vs. 25.3%) and emergency contraception (14.7% vs. 3.8%). The commonest source of information on contraception in Group A was the gynaecologist (17.9%) and family planning clinic (15.8%), whereas in Group B it was the individual’s partner (25.3%) and parents (16.4%). Contraceptive behaviour was significantly modified in both groups at post-abortion follow-up (both p < .001). The original difference between the groups, however, persisted (p = .006). In Group A, oral contraceptives were the dominant method (48.4%), followed by condoms (30.5%), whereas in Group B, the order was still the reverse (24.1% and 46.8%, respectively).

Conclusion: Cultural differences significantly affect the contraceptive behaviour. Nevertheless, interventions that promote contraception can still be successful in different populations.

Chinese abstract

目的: 研究的目的是比较在希腊色雷斯的基督教和穆斯林青少年堕胎后的避孕行为, 并检查在堕胎时广泛的避孕咨询是否改变了他们随后的避孕做法。

方法: 这一12年的前瞻性研究包括了在我们部门进行选择性堕胎的年龄在14-19岁的青少年, 这些青少年在出院前被提供了广泛的避孕咨询, 通过简单的问卷调查来评估在堕胎时和1年随访时对避孕的态度。

结果: 研究人群包括95名基督教东正教青少年 (A组) 和79名穆斯林青少年 (B组) 。在堕胎时两组之间的避孕行为显着不同 (p＝.004) 。A组中使用的避孕方法与B组比较如下: 口服避孕药 (27.4%比12.7%) 、避孕套 (22.1%比38.0%) 、中断性交 (18.9%比20.3%) 、周期禁欲 (16.8%比25.3%) 和紧急避孕(14.7% vs. 3.8%)。A组最常见的避孕信息来源是妇科医生 (17.9%) 和计划生育门诊 (15.8%) , 而B组则是个人伴侣 (25.3%) 和父母 (16.4%) 。在两组中, 在流产后随访时, 避孕行为显着改变 (两组p < 0.001) , 然而两组之间的原始差异仍然存在 (p＝.006); 在A组中, 口服避孕药是主要的方法 (48.4%) , 其次是安全套 (30.5%) , 而B组的顺序仍然相反 (分别为24.1%和46.8%) 。

结论: 文化差异显着影响避孕行为, 然而, 促进避孕的干预措施在不同人群中仍然是成功的。

Keywords:

• Abortion
• adolescents
• contraception
• Muslim
• teenagers
• Thrace

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.