Article Sidebar
Published:
Mar 31, 2025DOI:
10.4314/rjmhs.v8i1.2Keywords:
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
During the submission, authors will be requested to complete a ‘Copyright Transfer form' to assign to the University of Rwanda the copyright of the manuscript and any tables, illustrations or other material submitted for publication as part of the manuscript (the "Article") in all forms and media (whether now known or later developed), throughout the world, in all languages, for the full term of copyright, effective when the article is accepted for publication. The Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC-BY-NC-ND) license shall be applied.
Main Article Content
Cardiometabolic Risk Marker Changes in Centrally Obese Women Using Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (DMPA) in Kigali, Rwanda
Abstract
Background
Hormonal contraceptives, such as depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA), are known to increase the risk of cardiometabolic disease, especially in obese users who are already at high risk.
Objectives
This study aimed to evaluate changes in lipid profile, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C), blood pressure (BP), and inflammatory markers over a 12-month follow-up in centrally obese women using DMPA in Rwanda.
Methods
A prospective study involving 65 abdominally obese women (aged 15-49 years) was conducted at two family planning centres in Kigali. Measurements were taken at baseline, six months, and twelve months, including a lipid profile, HbA1c, BP, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP). Changes were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, with a significance level of 5%.
Results
The study demonstrated significant changes in the median of cardiometabolic parameters over 12 months of DMPA use. WC increased from 96(41) to 99.5(44) cm, TG from 1.15(2.40) to 1.53(3.63) mmol/L, while HDL-c decreased from 1.09(1.55) to 0.90(0.99) mmol/L (all P=0.001). Lipid ratios also increased significantly, where the TC/HDL-c increased from 3.54(5.92) to 5.99(8.58), and LDL-c/HDL-c from 2.63(4.8) to 4.68(7.38) (P=0.001).
Conclusion
Given these findings, assessing central obesity before initiating DMPA and performing cardiovascular risk evaluations every six months is recommended to mitigate adverse effects.
Rwanda J Med Health Sci 2025;8(1):17-29
