Publication:

Acceptability and women’s perceptions on progesterone only contraception: a comprehensive review

Progesterone-only contraceptives (POCs) represent a crucial pillar of modern family planning, offering highly effective options free from oestrogen-related cardiovascular risks. This review systematically examines patient preferences, satisfaction rates, and acceptability profiles across the primary POC modalities: progesterone-only pills (POPs), subdermal implants, long-acting injectables, and levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine systems (LNG-IUS). Based on multi-country trial networks, health technology assessments, and real-world database registry cohorts, this paper details how bleeding abnormalities, return-to-fertility expectations, and metabolic profiles drive patient adherence or premature discontinuation. While long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) exhibit the highest objective continuation rates, individual consumer choices are profoundly shaped by non-contraceptive benefits, user autonomy, and cultural perspectives. Strategic, structured patient counselling that balances expected bleeding disruptions against highly effective, discrete therapeutic benefits remains the definitive clinical intervention to improve long-term user satisfaction and minimize unmet contraceptive needs.