Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To study the knowledge of Saudi women regarding contraceptive use. METHODOLOGY: In Al-Qunfudah, Saudi Arabia, 1107 Saudi women aged 18 to 45 years old participated in a cross-sectional descriptive study utilizing a closed-question survey. Data were compiled using SPSS v 21 software. RESULTS: The participants in our study were 1107 females between the ages of 18 and 45. The majority of them were married, educated, and had used or were using oral contraceptives (OC) (50.2%), mostly for family planning (81.1%). Fear of OC side effects was stated by 39.9% of women who had never used it as a reason for not using it, and some women were unsure about consequences, such as mood changes (20.2%) and headaches (28%); 44.7% of women did not believe that they needed OC. Many women were ignorant of OC's health and menstrual cycle benefits, with only 7.9% and 5.8% agreeing that it can help with premenstrual syndrome and acne problems, respectively. Majority of women said that they learned about contraception through doctors and friends/relatives, but 73.0% felt that the information available from health-care service was inadequate. CONCLUSION: The findings revealed that women in this region were lack awareness regarding contraceptive techniques, including OC, as well as its side effects and potential health hazards. It is necessary to strengthen family knowledge and how they can planning and contraception initiatives.