Unmet Need for Family Planning in Nepal during the First Two Years Postpartum

Table 1

List of indicators included in this study and their definitions.

Variables	Definition/measurement
Unmet need	All postpartum women who are not currently using any family planning method were considered to have an unmet need for family planning. Unmet need was measured based on the DHS question “Would you like your next child within the next two years or would you like no more children?”
Return to menses	Postpartum amenorrhoea is the interval between the birth of a child and the resumption of menses and was assessed by women answering “yes” to the question “Has your menstrual period returned since the birth of (name)?” who were further asked “For how many months after the birth of (name) did you not have a period?”
Sexual activity	Postpartum sexual activity was assessed through questions: have you had sexual intercourse since the birth of (child’s name)? Women who answered “yes” were further asked “For how many months after the birth of (child’s name) did you not have sexual intercourse?”
Exclusive breastfeeding	Exclusive breastfeeding was considered if women were breastfeeding and did not give any additional food or liquid (including water) to their baby in the last 24 hours, excluding vitamins, medicines, and vaccines.
Family planning use	Family planning use was further divided into modern and traditional methods use. And the modern family planning methods included female sterilisation, male sterilisation, pills, intrauterine contraceptive device (IUCD), injectables, implants, male condoms, female condoms, diaphragm, foam/jelly, and lactational amenorrhoea method (LAM). Traditional/folk methods included rhythm, withdrawal, and folk methods.
Lactational amenorrhoea method (LAM)	The criteria used for LAM were exclusive breastfeeding and menses not returned since delivery and the infant is less than six months old.