Table 1 Description of the studies reviewed

BDHS 2014

Seventh national level survey based on a two-stage stratified sample of households

18,000 ever married women age 15–49 years

To provide up to date information on fertility and childhood mortality levels; fertility preferences; awareness, approval, and use of family planning methods; maternal and child health including breastfeeding practices, nutrition levels, and newborn care; knowledge and attitudes towards HIV/AIDS and STIs; and community level data on accessibility and availability of health and family planning services.

BDHS 2011

Nationally representative two-stage stratified sample of households

17,842 women age 12–49 years

To provide up to date information on fertility, childhood mortality, fertility preferences, awareness, approval, use of FP methods, maternal and child health, knowledge and attitudes towards HIV/AIDS and STIs, accessibility and availability of health and FP services.

BDHS 2007

Nationally representative survey

10,996 women aged 15–49 and 3,771 men aged 15–54 years

To provide up-to-date information on fertility and childhood mortality levels; fertility preferences; awareness, approval, and use of family planning methods; breastfeeding practices; nutrition levels; maternal and child health; awareness of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases; knowledge of tuberculosis; and domestic violence.

Ferdousi 2010

Descriptive cross- sectional study

272 rural women aged 15–49 years

To explore the proportion of unmet need of family planning among the 272 married woman of reproductive age living in a rural area. The study also explored the contraceptive prevalence rate, reasons for not using contraceptives, and the methods of contraceptives used by the women in the study.

Streatfield 2012

Secondary analysis of Matlab DSS and RKS longitudinal data

2,709 women aged 13–49 years

To examine method use behaviour of 2,709 women, who were in the study almost over their entire reproductive years. They also took a cutoff point (2008) and examined the method use pattern of various age groups in that year.

Kamal 2011

Cross- sectional study, analysis of BDHS 2007 data

3, 866 rural women aged 15–49 years

To determine the prevalence of unintended pregnancy and socioeconomic correlates such as pregnancy order, age, religion, ever use of FP methods, region and wealth index to determine if they were associated with unintended pregnancy among rural women

Saha 2007

BDHS 1999–2000 data, and Matlab DSS area data collected between 1978 and 2001 were analyzed.

BDHS 1999–2000: 10,544 ever-married women aged 10–49, of whom 9,696 were currently married and aged 15–49 years). Matlab DSS (1978 and 2001) (dealt with over 200,000 population). Women of aged 15–49 years.

To explain the lack of change in fertility in Bangladesh despite the increase in contraceptive prevalence rate and to examine relationships among contraceptive prevalence, the abortion ratio, desired fertility and total fertility by secondary analysis of data. They determined the factors that can be attributed to explain the difference between the national TFR and desired fertility.

Reza 2001

Thesis paper, analysis of BDHS 1996–97 data

3,312 currently married men aged 15–59 years

To determine the factors influencing men’s fertility preference in Bangladesh. They examined factors such as region of residence, education, age, occupation, gender preference, religion, influence of mass media and interspousal communication to show their association with fertility preference of men.

Islam 2010

Secondary data analysis on three consecutive Bangladesh Demographic and Health Surveys (BDHSs) (1996–1997, 1999–2000 and 2004)

Sample drawn from integrated Multipurpose Master Sample (IMPS) created by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

To assess how fertility patterns in two high fertility regions (Sylhet and Chittagong) differ from rest of the country through a marriage cohort analysis and examined the factors determining the higher parity in these two regions. Among other factors, they also examined the effect of son preference on fertility in these regions

Gipson 2009

Analysis of cross-sectional and longitudinal utilized surveillance data from the Sample Registration System (SRS) of icddr,b. From two thanas of Jessore District Bangladesh.

3,052 rural Bangladeshi couples (women of reproductive age 15–49 and their husbands- age not specified)

To investigate the influence of husbands’ and wives’ fertility preferences on the likelihood of a subsequent pregnancy in the period 1998–2003.