Telemedicine for adolescent and young adult long-acting reversible contraception post-insertion visits: outcomes over 1 year.

OBJECTIVES: Telemedicine for long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) care is understudied given the rapid implementation of these services in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We compared outcomes over 1 year of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) attending a LARC post-insertion visit via telemedicine versus in person.

STUDY DESIGN: We included AYAs (ages 13-26 years) who received LARC between 4/1/20-3/1/21 and attended a post-insertion visit within 12 weeks. Outcomes over 1 year were compared between AYAs who completed this visit via telemedicine versus in person. We analyzed the data using descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and regression models.

RESULTS: Of 194 AYAs (ages 13.9-25.7 years) attending a post-insertion visit, 40.2% utilized telemedicine. Menstrual management (OR = 1.02, CI: 0.40-2.60), acne management (p = .28), number of visits attended (RR = 1.08, CI: 0.99-1.19), and LARC removal (p = .95) were similar between groups. AYAs attending via telemedicine were less likely than those attending in person to have STI testing (p = .001). Intrauterine device expulsion or malposition and arm symptoms with implant in situ were rare outcomes in both groups.

CONCLUSION: Roughly 40% of AYAs attended a post-insertion visit via telemedicine during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic and had similar 1-year outcomes as those attending in person. The decreased likelihood of STI testing for those using telemedicine highlights the need to provide alternative options, when indicated, such as asynchronous or home testing.

IMPLICATIONS: Our results support the use of telemedicine for AYA LARC post-insertion care given similar clinical outcomes and healthcare utilization for LARC-related concerns over 1 year as in-person visits. Furthermore, our results identify STI testing as a potential gap in telemedicine care which can help inform and improve clinic protocols.