A portrait of IUD users in the United States using nationally representative survey data from 2002 and 2004

Objectives: IUD use in the United States fell dramatically in the 1980s and 1990s—from 7% of all contraceptors in 1982 to 1% in 1995. By 2001, IUD use had begun a gradual, slight increase; but little is known about the characteristics of women now choosing IUDs. To fill this knowledge gap, we used survey data to examine the characteristics of current IUDs users.

Methods: We used data from the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth and data from a 2004 nationally representative telephone survey of women who were at risk of unintended pregnancy, examining the characteristics of women using different methods of contraception. We compared differences in method use according to age, parity, marital status, race/ethnicity, nativity, poverty, education, insurance status, type of contraceptive service provider and payment source for contraceptive care.

Results: Women currently using IUDs are typically older, married, and have already had at least two children compared to users of other reversible contraceptive methods. They are also disproportionately likely to be of Hispanic ethnicity and to have immigrated to the United States—35% of IUD users reported being Hispanic and about 40% were foreign-born, compared to 10-20% of women using other contraceptive methods (depending on survey).

Conclusions: IUD users differ from other contraceptive users in several ways. These findings can be used by program planners and advocates interested in designing education and information campaigns for both providers and users that dispel old myths about the appropriateness of IUDs for certain types of women.