Round table discussion on 'Public health: contribution of family planning towards public health'

摘要

The need for contraception is almost as old as humankind. Interestingly, besides treatments for pain and inflammation suggestions on how to achieve contraception belongs to the oldest written medical description known, i.e. more than 4000 years ago. In spite of an impressive armamentarium of different contraceptive methods (mostly for the female) available today we are still faced with a worldwide abortion rate of more than 20%, 38% of unwanted pregnancies worldwide (according to Allan Gutmacher 46% of women have had at least one abortion in their reproductive life in the US), and an increasing number of teenage pregnancies.It was the aim of this round table discussion to debate where we stand and what had been the contribution of family planning towards public health and what this contribution could be in the future.