1. Reproductive Health Programmes and Their Focus
| Area | Purpose | Examples / outcomes |
|---|---|---|
| Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) | Awareness, facilities and support for reproductive health | Medical care for pregnancy, delivery, contraception, STIs, infertility and menstrual problems |
| Sex education | Correct myths and misconceptions; encourage safe and hygienic practices | Information on adolescence, reproductive organs, STIs and AIDS |
| Maternal and child care | Promote healthy families | Antenatal and post-natal care, breast-feeding, immunisation |
| Legal / social safeguards | Prevent misuse and sex-related social evils | Ban on amniocentesis for sex determination; action against female foeticide |
2. Natural, Barrier and IUD Contraceptive Methods
| Method | Principle / action | NCERT examples and cues |
|---|---|---|
| Periodic abstinence | Avoid coitus during fertile period | Days 10-17 of menstrual cycle; no medicines or devices, but failure chances are higher |
| Withdrawal | Penis withdrawn before ejaculation to avoid insemination | Also called coitus interruptus |
| Lactational amenorrhoea | Intense lactation suppresses ovulation and menstruation | Effective only up to about six months after parturition when breast-feeding is complete |
| Barrier methods | Physically prevent sperm and ovum from meeting | Male/female condoms; diaphragms, cervical caps and vaults; condoms also reduce STI risk |
| Non-medicated IUD | Inserted into uterus by trained professional | Lippes loop |
| Copper-releasing IUD | Increases sperm phagocytosis; copper suppresses sperm motility and fertilising capacity | CuT, Cu7, Multiload 375 |
| Hormone-releasing IUD | Makes uterus unsuitable for implantation and cervix hostile to sperm | Progestasert, LNG-20 |
3. Hormonal vs Surgical Contraception
| Feature | Hormonal methods | Surgical methods / sterilisation |
|---|---|---|
| Forms | Pills, injectables and implants | Vasectomy in male; tubectomy in female |
| Action | Inhibit ovulation and implantation; alter cervical mucus to retard sperm entry | Block gamete transport, preventing conception |
| Examples | Progestogen or progestogen-oestrogen pills; Saheli is non-steroidal once-a-week pill | Vas deferens cut/tied in vasectomy; fallopian tube cut/tied in tubectomy |
| Typical use | Daily pills for 21 days, beginning within first five days of cycle; repeat after 7-day break | Terminal method when no further pregnancies are desired |
| Reversibility | Generally reversible under medical guidance | Highly effective, but reversibility is poor |
| Emergency use | Hormonal pills or IUDs within 72 hours of coitus can prevent possible pregnancy | Not an emergency method |
4. MTP vs Contraception
| Point | Contraception | Medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) |
|---|---|---|
| When used | Before conception, to prevent unwanted pregnancy or delay/space pregnancy | After conception, to intentionally terminate pregnancy before full term |
| Examples | Natural methods, barriers, IUDs, pills, implants, sterilisation | Legal procedure under specified conditions and qualified medical care |
| Safety | Method should be selected with qualified medical advice | Relatively safer during first trimester (up to 12 weeks); second-trimester abortion is riskier |
| Important caution | Possible side effects must not be ignored | Illegal, unsafe procedures and sex-selective abortion must be avoided |
5. Curable vs Non-curable STIs in NCERT
| Group | Examples / features | NCERT point |
|---|---|---|
| Usually completely curable if detected early | Gonorrhoea, syphilis, chlamydiasis, genital warts and trichomoniasis | Early detection and complete treatment are essential |
| Not completely curable | Hepatitis-B, genital herpes and HIV infection | HIV leading to AIDS is especially dangerous |
| Other transmission routes | Hepatitis-B and HIV may spread through contaminated needles, instruments, blood transfusion and mother-to-foetus transmission | Not limited to sexual intercourse |
| Prevention | Avoid unknown/multiple partners; use condoms; seek qualified medical help promptly | STI incidence is high in 15-24 year age group |
6. Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART)
| Technique | What is transferred / done | Key condition |
|---|---|---|
| IVF-ET | Fertilisation outside body, followed by embryo transfer | Known as test-tube baby programme |
| ZIFT | Zygote or early embryo (up to 8 blastomeres) transferred to fallopian tube | Zygote intra-fallopian transfer |
| IUT | Embryo with more than 8 blastomeres transferred to uterus | Intra-uterine transfer |
| GIFT | Donor ovum transferred to fallopian tube | Recipient cannot produce ova but can provide environment for fertilisation and development |
| ICSI | Sperm injected directly into ovum in laboratory | Forms embryo under specialised handling |
| AI / IUI | Semen artificially introduced into vagina or uterus | Useful for inability to inseminate or very low sperm count |