Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness?
Background: Many men have limited knowledge about reproductive health and fertility. The aim of the study was to evaluate if Reproductive Life Plan (RLP)-based counselling during a sexual health visit could increase men’s fertility awareness. Material and methods: The study was a randomized controll...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Upsala Medical Society
2018-10-01
|
| Series: | Upsala Journal of Medical Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03009734.2018.1541948 |
| _version_ | 1827847879602995200 |
|---|---|
| author | Maja Bodin Tanja Tydén Lisa Käll Margareta Larsson |
| author_facet | Maja Bodin Tanja Tydén Lisa Käll Margareta Larsson |
| author_sort | Maja Bodin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Many men have limited knowledge about reproductive health and fertility. The aim of the study was to evaluate if Reproductive Life Plan (RLP)-based counselling during a sexual health visit could increase men’s fertility awareness. Material and methods: The study was a randomized controlled trial including 201 men aged 18–50 who visited either of two participating sexual health clinics in Sweden for sexually transmitted infection testing during 2014–2016. All men received standard care, and men in the intervention group (IG) also received oral and written RLP-based information about lifestyle and fertility. Awareness about fertility and lifestyle-related factors were the main outcomes, measured through a questionnaire before the intervention and through a telephone survey after three months. Impressions from the counselling were also assessed at follow-up. Results: A majority (71%) of men wanted children in the future. General fertility awareness increased from a mean score of 4.6 to 5.5 out of 12 (P = 0.004) in the IG. The mean number of accurate lifestyle factors (that could affect fertility) mentioned increased from 3.6 to 4.4 (P < 0.001) in the IG. There were no improvements in the control group. Among the men in the IG, 76% had a positive experience of the counselling, and 77% had received new information. Conclusion: The intervention managed to increase different aspects of men’s fertility awareness. In the future, the format for preconception care for men needs further development. Including men in preconception health policy guidelines and identifying suitable actors for care provision would be important first steps. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T09:37:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-152623851eca4c9b89780e0edecbd091 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0300-9734 2000-1967 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T09:37:50Z |
| publishDate | 2018-10-01 |
| publisher | Upsala Medical Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Upsala Journal of Medical Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-152623851eca4c9b89780e0edecbd0912023-09-02T13:29:04ZengUpsala Medical SocietyUpsala Journal of Medical Sciences0300-97342000-19672018-10-01123425526310.1080/03009734.2018.15419481541948Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness?Maja Bodin0Tanja Tydén1Lisa Käll2Margareta Larsson3Uppsala UniversityUppsala UniversityCentre for Gender Research, Uppsala UniversityUppsala UniversityBackground: Many men have limited knowledge about reproductive health and fertility. The aim of the study was to evaluate if Reproductive Life Plan (RLP)-based counselling during a sexual health visit could increase men’s fertility awareness. Material and methods: The study was a randomized controlled trial including 201 men aged 18–50 who visited either of two participating sexual health clinics in Sweden for sexually transmitted infection testing during 2014–2016. All men received standard care, and men in the intervention group (IG) also received oral and written RLP-based information about lifestyle and fertility. Awareness about fertility and lifestyle-related factors were the main outcomes, measured through a questionnaire before the intervention and through a telephone survey after three months. Impressions from the counselling were also assessed at follow-up. Results: A majority (71%) of men wanted children in the future. General fertility awareness increased from a mean score of 4.6 to 5.5 out of 12 (P = 0.004) in the IG. The mean number of accurate lifestyle factors (that could affect fertility) mentioned increased from 3.6 to 4.4 (P < 0.001) in the IG. There were no improvements in the control group. Among the men in the IG, 76% had a positive experience of the counselling, and 77% had received new information. Conclusion: The intervention managed to increase different aspects of men’s fertility awareness. In the future, the format for preconception care for men needs further development. Including men in preconception health policy guidelines and identifying suitable actors for care provision would be important first steps.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03009734.2018.1541948Counsellingfertility awarenesslifestylemenpreconception carereproduction |
| spellingShingle | Maja Bodin Tanja Tydén Lisa Käll Margareta Larsson Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness? Upsala Journal of Medical Sciences Counselling fertility awareness lifestyle men preconception care reproduction |
| title | Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness? |
| title_full | Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness? |
| title_fullStr | Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness? |
| title_short | Can Reproductive Life Plan-based counselling increase men’s fertility awareness? |
| title_sort | can reproductive life plan based counselling increase men s fertility awareness |
| topic | Counselling fertility awareness lifestyle men preconception care reproduction |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03009734.2018.1541948 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT majabodin canreproductivelifeplanbasedcounsellingincreasemensfertilityawareness AT tanjatyden canreproductivelifeplanbasedcounsellingincreasemensfertilityawareness AT lisakall canreproductivelifeplanbasedcounsellingincreasemensfertilityawareness AT margaretalarsson canreproductivelifeplanbasedcounsellingincreasemensfertilityawareness |