Unintended pregnancy among married women is high in Iran, despite the widespread use of contraceptives.1 In an analysis of data from the 2000 Iran Demographic and Health Survey, 35% of 5,427 currently married women who were pregnant classified their pregnancy as either mistimed or unwanted. Two-thirds of women with unintended pregnancies had been using a method at the time the current pregnancy occurred (72% of urban women and 63% of rural women), of whom 48% were relying on the pill, 11% on the condom, 30% on withdrawal and 12% on another method. In a multivariate logistic regression, women younger than 35 and those with any education had reduced odds of reporting that the pregnancy was unintended (odds ratios, 0.2-0.4 and 0.4-0.8, respectively). Urban residence was positively associated with unintended pregnancy (1.2), perhaps because use of withdrawal was particularly common among urban women (39%), the analysts comment. Given the findings, the researchers recommend the design of "strategies to reduce the rate of unintended pregnancies," especially by increasing the quality of contraceptive services and information.

1. Abbasi-Shavazi MJ et al., Unintended pregnancies in the Islamic Republic of Iran: levels and correlates, Asian-Pacific Population Journal, 2004, 19 (1):27-38.

Copyright Alan Guttmacher Institute Sep 2004
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