Quality of life and sexual life in women using modern family planning methods in Rwanda

Abstract

Background and Objectives The use of family planning (FP) is critical for achieving sustainable population growth and prosperous societies. The unmet need for FP in Rwanda is still high. Women’s personal experiences and perceptions on contraceptive methods can influence the uptake. Hence, the aim of this study is to evaluate the QoL and sexual life in women on modern FP methods in Rwanda. Methodology: A multicenter prospective cross-sectional study was conducted on 415 women using modern FP methods for six months at 3 urban and 2 rural FP clinics in Rwanda. The ShortForm-36 Health Survey (SF-36) tool was adopted to evaluate the QoL and the Female sexual distress scale (FSDS) to assess sexual function. Data were analyzed using R programming version 4.0.2. Results: The average QoL scores for participants were good in all domains with social functioning score being highest 94.16% (SD=17), and physical functioning score the lowest 80.6% (SD=34.45). The age group 32-38 had higher scores on all domains (p <0.05). The type of FP method used correlate with QoL life on all domains with IUD being associated with the best scores and affects more the physical functioning of women on FP methods (p <0.05). Most women (79.5%) had good sexual function with FSDS score below 11 points. High level of education (university or higher), type of method used and BMI had significant positive effect on sexual satisfaction (p<0.05) however, the level of education was a confounder on logistic regression analysis. Copper IUD and permanent sterilization groups have better sexual function, 96% and 84% respectively. Conclusions: The women using modern FP methods in Rwanda have in general good sexual function and QoL. The type of FP methods used and age have a potent effect on the QoL while sexual function was influenced by the type of FP, level of education and BMI