Abstract:
Background: One of the of methods to control fertility is use of injectable Depo-Provera
which has the side effect of delaying return to fertility after discontinuation of it. Delay
of fertility return after the method termination remains a major concern for women who
use it. This fear poses a negative impact on utilization and continuation of Depo-Provera
in developing nations including Ethiopia. Therefore, determining the median delay of
fertility return after discontinuation of Depo-Provera and identifying the associating
factors are important for developing solutions to the issues of clients and health care
providers
Objective: To assess delay in fertility return after discontinuation Depo-Provera and
associated factors among pregnant women attending ANC in public health facilities in
Gindeberet district, west shoa zone, Oromia, Ethiopia ,2021
Methods: Facility based cross sectional study was conducted on 415 pregnant women
attending Antenatal care in Public Health Facilities in Gindeberet district from August
10-October 10/2021.Consecutive sampling technique was used. pretested structured
Interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data.Data we r e entered
into Epi info version 7 and then exported to SPSS version 25 for cleaning ,analysis and
summarized using descriptive statistics of Frequencies and median. Bivariate and
multivariable logistic regression was applied to estimate the crude and adjusted odds
ratios with 95% CI to determine the presence and strength of association and P- value <
0.05 as cut off point
Result: The median delay of fertility return in this study was found to be 10 months from
date of Depo-Provera discontinuation. The magnitude of fertility delay in this study was
45.5%[95%CI=38.4.4%,52.6%].Multivariable analysis showed that being lower income
≤2500 ETB [AOR:0.09 (0.042,0.21)],Age group from 15-24years [AOR:0.04 (0.006,
0.23)],Age group from 25-29years [AOR:0.15(0.04,0.55)] and Age group from 30-
34yearsAOR:[0.23(0.083,0.66)],Age at first sex 19-23years [AOR:0.4(0.17,0.93)],Being
sexually active1day/week[AOR:5.5(1.4,20.8)] sexually active 2-3days/week [AOR:4.2
(1.7,14.9)] these variables had significant association with delay in return to fertility after
discontinuation of using Depo-Provera. No direct relation was found between the number
of injections and the time required for the return of fertility for null gravid and gravid
women.
Conclusion and recommendation: After discontinuation of Depo-Provera there is
significant delay in return to fertility. Therefore, Women should be counseled that there is
a potential for delay in return to fertility following discontinuation of the method. Being
older age, being higher income, infrequent sexual intercourse and delayed age at first sex
were predictors of fertility delay after discontinuation of Depo-Prov
