Tubal sterilization or vasectomy: how do married couples make the choice?

Abstract

Objective: To examine the relative importance of husband, wife, and couple factors as determinants of sterilization method choice.

Design: Married couples seeking sterilization interviewed before surgery and again 1 year later.

Setting: Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program subscribers seeking care at the Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Santa Clara, California.

Participants: Two hundred married women seeking a tubal sterilization and their husbands and 200 married men seeking a vasectomy and their wives.

Interventions: None.

Main outcome measures: Sterilization method chosen.

Results: In a logistic regression model, nine predictor variables correctly classified 94.9% of 395 couples (P less than 0.000).

Conclusions: The choice of a sterilization method is achieved primarily through processes that involve both spouses. The motivations of both husband and wife, their mutual influence and communication, their present pattern of contraceptive use, and what they know about the satisfactions or dissatisfactions of other people who have had sterilizations are all factors that should be taken into account when the clinician helps a patient make the method-choice decision.

PIP: The objective of this study was to examine the relative importance of husband, wife, and couple factors as determinants of sterilization method choice. Participants were married couples seeking sterilization who were interviewed prior to surgery and again 1 year later at the Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Santa Clara, California. 200 married women seeking tubal sterilization and their husbands and 200 married men seeking vasectomy and their wives were evaluated concerning sterilization method chosen. In a logistic regression model, 9 predictor variables correctly classified 94.9% of 395 couples (p.000). The choice of sterilization method is achieved primarily through processes that involve both spouses. Motivations of both partners, their mutual influence and communication, their present pattern of contraceptive usage, and what they know concerning method acceptability or lack thereof of others who have undergone sterilization are all factors that must be taken into account when the clinician helps a patient make a method-choice decision.