Prevalence of long-acting reversible contraceptive uses and predictors among Ethiopian women over the past five years. A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Objective LARCs are a type of long-acting reversible contraception that is both safe and cost-effective for women. The aim of this review was to determine the pooled prevalence of LARC users and associated factors among Ethiopian women over the last five years. Study design : We searched Pub Med, Scopus, Science Direct, Web of Science, and Google Scholar on data published between 2017 to February 2021. The I2 index was used to measure heterogeneity between studies and subgroup analysis and leave one sensitivity analysis to determine possible causes of heterogeneity Results Among 440 studies identified, 75 were selected for a full review, and 27 met the inclusion criteria. Long-acting reversible contraceptives (LACs) users were detected in 3,588 of the 12,741 women studied, yielding a 29% overall prevalence (95% CI: 13-20%). Previous use of LARC was associated with being four times (P=0.001, 95% CI 2.55-4.57) more likely to use LARCs, women with a positive attitude towards birth control (P=0.001, 95% CI 1.5-2.3), and good knowledge (p=0.001, 95% CI 1.16-1.98) were two times more likely to use LARC. Conclusion prevalence of LARC was low among Ethiopian women, and knowledge, attitude, and previous use of LARC affects its prevalence