In May, the White House clarified the guidelines for contraceptive coverage, ending cost containment practices that made it hard for some women to access the method of their choice.
Carl Djerassi, who died recently aged 91, has been honoured globally for his work. In his remarkable career he also did pioneering work with antihistamines and topical corticosteroids for inflammation…
Curbing teen pregnancy rates will take more than just access to contraception.
Image of pregnant women via Coffeemill/www.shutterstock.com
Teen pregnancy is a public health problem in the United States. According to 2010 estimates, girls aged 15-19 years accounted for 614,000 pregnancies in the US. An additional 11,000 pregnancies were recorded…
Very little has been published on VivaGel in peer-reviewed literature.
Morgan/Flickr
Australian biotech company Starpharma has announced the imminent launch of a condom coated with an antimicrobial chemical known as VivaGel. While it might be marketed as a great leap forward for preventing…
HIV-prevention campaigns need to do more than simply urge people to use condoms.
charnsitr/Shutterstock
Australia had a quick and effective response to HIV at the start of the epidemic. Some 30 years later, however, there’s a tendency to underestimate the sheer effort involved in maintaining HIV prevention…
The morning-after pill is available in Australian pharmacies without prescription.
Shutterstock
Condoms break, contraceptive pills are missed and in the throes of passion, contraception might be overlooked. So from time to time, a woman may need emergency contraception, known as the morning-after…
Women are generally comfortable with post-sex contraceptives but anti-abortion campaigners aren’t.
WarmSleepy
More than 50 years after Australian women first had access to the oral contraceptive pill, research into new contraceptives has stalled and women are stuck with new versions of old products to manage their…
Pharmacists could have an empathetic conversation with women rather than having them fill in an intrusive questionnaire.
Tim Parkinson
The emergency contraceptive pill (morning-after pill) contains a hormone called levonorgestrel and can be bought without a prescription. It’s used to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, but many women…
An American blog by a relatively unknown author about the goals of the pro-life movement went viral recently, racking up around 100,000 hits in a mere two days. The blog questioned the selective and inconsistent…
IUDs are safe for young fertile women but remain unpopular in Australia.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/scatto_felino
IUDs are a safe and highly effective form of contraception but misinformation continues to make them an unpopular choice for women and doctors, Australian research has found. An Intra Uterine Device is…
A much wider group of Australian women will be able to choose a medical rather than surgical procedure.
spaceodissey/Flickr
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) finally included the abortifacient Mifepristone (also referred to as RU486) on the Australia Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG) in August 2012 – after nearly…
A vaginal ring could one day prevent pregnancy and STIs… but it’s still a long way off.
Flickr/dhammza
By 2020, 1.2 billion people or 16% of the world’s population will be entering their childbearing years, with 90% of these in the developing world. Along with education, the availability of effective contraception…
Some women question the long-term impact of the contraceptive pill on their fertility.
J. Stephen Conn
The combined oral contraceptive pill is the most popular form of contraception in Australia and is taken by an estimated 100 million women worldwide. The pill’s most obvious use is to prevent pregnancy…
Why is philanthropist Melinda Gates dedicating the rest of her life to improving women’s access to contraception?
DFID UK Department for International Development
Melinda Gates’ vow to put the availability of contraception back on the global health agenda – even if it means going against the Pope – has provided a welcome voice for logic and compassion. Speaking…
Anthropologue et démographe, professeur émérite au Muséum national d’histoire naturelle et conseiller de la direction de l'INED, Muséum national d’histoire naturelle (MNHN)
Director, SPHERE NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Women's Sexual and Reproductive Health in Primary Care and Professor and Head of the Department of General Practice, Monash University