Contraceptive use among women with a history of induced abortion: findings from a national sample of sexually active, non-pregnant women in Ghana

Objective
The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between a history of induced abortion and current use of contraception among reproductive-aged women in Ghana.

Methods
The analysed data were a weighted sample of 6544 sexually active, non-pregnant women aged 15–49 years, obtained from the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. Survey logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the odds of currently using any contraception and of using a modern method of contraception, given a history of induced abortion in the period 2009–2014.

Results
A history of induced abortion between 2009 and 2014 was reported by 17.4% of women (95% CI 16.0%, 18.9%); 28.7% (95% CI 26.9%, 30.6%) were currently using a method of contraception and 23.0% (95% CI 21.4%, 24.7%) were currently using a modern method of contraception. The majority (80.1%) of current contraceptive users were using a modern method. The adjusted analysis revealed no statistically significant association between a history of induced abortion and current contraceptive behaviour. Other factors were associated with modern contraceptive use.

Conclusion
Overall, the use of contraception among sexually active women in Ghana was found to be low. Our findings showed that women’s experience of induced abortion was unlikely to influence their current use of modern contraception.