Overview

This document is part of the process for improving the quality of care in family planning. Medical eligibility criteria for contraceptive use (MEC), the first edition of which was published in 1996, presents current WHO guidance on the safety of various contraceptive methods for use in the context of specific health conditions and characteristics. This is the fifth edition of the MEC – the latest in the series of periodic updates

This edition is divided into two parts. Part I describes how the recommendations were developed and Part II contains the recommendations and describes how to use them. The recommendations contained within this document are based on the latest clinical and epidemiological data. Several tools and job aids are available from WHO and other sources to help providers use these recommendations in practice

Downloads

• Full text
  267 pages, pdf 2.1 MB
• Executive summary
  14 pages
• Part I – Development of the Medical eligibility criteria for contraceptive use, fifth edition For
  pdf, 571kb
  95 pages, pdf 848 KB
• Part II – Using the recommendations
  pdf, 711kb
  

Editorial

• WHO medical eligibility criteria update
  Contraception Volume 94, Issue 3, September 2016, Pages 193–194

Related tool

• Medical eligibility criteria wheel for contraceptive use

Related guidance

• Selected practice recommendations for contraceptive use
  3rd edition, 2016

This publication was Highly Commended at the BMA Medical Book awards in 2016

• Read more

Webinar “Guidance on hormonal contraceptive eligibility for women living at high risk of HIV acquisition”

• Recording of the webinar on the RHR YouTube Site
• A link to the final version of the FAQ’s