BACKGROUND<\/p>\n
Tubal ligation can be a controversial method of birth control, depending on the patient's circumstances and the physician's beliefs.<\/p>\n
METHODS<\/p>\n
In a national survey of 1800 US obstetrician-gynecologist (Ob\/Gyn) physicians, we examined how patients’ and physicians’ characteristics influence Ob\/Gyns’ advice about, and provision of, tubal ligation. Physicians were presented with a vignette in which a patient requests tubal ligation. The patient's age, gravida\/parity and her husband's agreement\/disagreement were varied in a factorial experiment. Criterion variables were whether physicians would discourage tubal ligation, and whether physicians would provide the surgery.<\/p>\n
RESULTS<\/p>\n
The response rate was 66% (1154\/1760). Most Ob\/Gyns (98%) would help the patient to obtain tubal ligation, although 9–70% would attempt to dissuade her, depending on her characteristics. Forty-five percent of physicians would discourage a G2P1 (gravida\/parity) woman, while 29% would discourage a G4P3 woman. Most physicians (59%) would discourage a 26-year-old whose husband disagreed, while 32% would discourage a 26-year-old whose husband agreed. For a 36-year-old patient, 47% would discourage her if her husband disagreed, while only 10% would discourage her if her husband agreed. Physicians’ sex had no significant effect on advice about tubal ligation.<\/p>\n
CONCLUSIONS<\/p>\n
Regarding patients who seek surgical sterilization, physicians’ advice varies based on patient age, parity and spousal agreement but almost all Ob\/Gyns are willing to provide or help patients obtain surgical sterilization if asked. An important limitation of the study is that a brief vignette, while useful for statistical analysis, is a rough approximation of an actual clinical encounter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BACKGROUND Tubal ligation can be a controversial method of birth control, depending on the patient's circumstances and the physician's beliefs. METHODS In a national survey of 1800 US obstetrician-gynecologist (Ob\/Gyn) physicians, we examined how patients’ and physicians’ characteristics influence Ob\/Gyns’ … Continue reading