Acceptability and side effects of Cyclofem© once-a-month injectable contraceptive in Kerman, Iran

Background: When family planning programmes offer a wide variety of contraceptives, contraceptive prevalence would be higher overall.
Objective: To determine the acceptability of Cyclofem^© and to evaluate its side effects and continuation rate in Iran.
Materials and Methods: An introductory study of Cyclofem^© was conducted in seven districts of Kerman Province, the largest province of Iran, in three phases. At first, 14394 women attending randomly selected urban and rural health centers representing different socioeconomic classes were invited to choose Cyclofem^© after a standard schedule of counselling. At the second phase 418 of those who accepted Cyclofem^© and 354 of those who refused to use the method were randomly elected to participate in an interview. At the third phase the first group was followed up for one year at regular one-month intervals.
Results: Nearly 12.6% (n=1809) of 14394 women counselled to choose Cyclofem^© accepted the contraceptive method. They had a mean (±SD) age of 28.5 (±6.5) years. Fear of side effects was the most common cause of refusal to use Cyclofem^©. The one-year continuation rate was 21.2%. The three main side effects leading to early discontinuation of Cyclofem^© were nausea (18%), prolonged menses (15.8%), and amenorrhea (14.7%), respectively.
Conclusion: The one-year continuation rate of Cyclofem^© use in Iran has been lower than other countries. Further research is necessary to improve continuation rates.