To enjoy an easier life, most women or wives seek permanent birth control. We can’t blame them for choosing this method because not everyone wants to spontaneously have kids. Additionally, they also rely on female sterilisation as a permanent way to prevent pregnancy.
Unfortunately for them, not all doctors agree with permanent birth control. Aside from age and reproductive health, experts consider various factors when administering permanent birth control. Once you learn the reasons for their hesitation, you’ll understand why they sometimes refuse their patients.
In this article, you’ll read:
- Effectiveness of permanent birth control in women
- Birth control and sterilisation
Effectiveness of Permanent Birth Control in Women
Studies found that permanent birth control in women has higher than expected failure rates. The most common procedures for this are called hysteroscopic sterilisation and laparoscopic sterilisation.
Dr Aileen Gariepy is the director of complex family planning in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine. He is involved in a study regarding the most common methods of sterilisation.
According to research, hysteroscopic sterilisation is as effective as minimally invasive laparoscopic sterilisation. Additionally, the effectiveness of the two methods is almost similar.
“The rate we found is five to six times higher than the sterilisation failure rate of 1% that’s often cited by physicians when counselling patients,” Dr Gariepy said.
Meanwhile, the 1% figure, she noted, is based on decades-old data from the U.S. Collaborative Review of Sterilisation study.
Female Sterilisation as a Permanent Way to Prevent Pregnancy
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Along with their partners, approximately 219 million women seek female sterilisation. It is what they consider a permanent way to prevent pregnancy. When you complete this procedure, you won’t have to worry about having more babies.
However, remember that we mentioned how not all doctors agree with this procedure. Even if you don’t care about the risks, specialists always put the possibility of childbirth as a priority. Because of this, some young mums who want to stop getting pregnant early cannot get sterilised.
Comparing the Most Common Permanent Birth Control Methods
Earlier, we mentioned that hysteroscopic and laparoscopic sterilisation comes with relatively similar effects. For laparoscopic sterilisation, a surgeon makes a small incision near the belly button. Afterwards, they follow the necessary steps that cut or close off the fallopian tubes.
Meanwhile, hysteroscopic sterilisation uses Essure’s medical device to block the fallopian tubes. This method prevents pregnancy using the implanted metal coils. Over time, the implants develop scar tissue that ensures birth control.
“Women and doctors want to know: ‘Can I rely on this for pregnancy prevention?” Dr Gariepy said.
People often ask for reassurance. Moreover, they tend to question the overall efficiency of permanent birth control for pregnancy prevention.
“Previous studies had looked at sterilisation in women with commercial insurance, and their health outcomes are often different than someone with Medicaid,” Dr Gariepy said. “It was important to look at people’s experiences with Medicaid and their real-world outcomes,” he added.
Meanwhile, doctors and experts put emphasis on the real risk of failure of the procedure.
“Women need to know the real risk of failure,” Dr Gariepy said.
She then added the findings showing the need for further study on surgical techniques. The techniques include those that can contribute to the higher-than-expected pregnancy rates.
Birth Control and Sterilisation
Both men and women use different types of contraception to prevent unwanted pregnancy. We all know that this applies to the usual condoms and birth control pills we commonly find in pharmacies.
Meanwhile, sterilisation is a permanent form of birth control that is highly effective at preventing pregnancy. However, it is difficult to reverse if you ever change your mind after undergoing sterilisation. When it comes to the procedure itself, women usual get tubal litigation while men undergo vasectomy.
Furthermore, sterilisation does not help on protecting you against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Because of this, you still need to be aware if you or your sexual partner is free from STDs.
Tubal Ligation
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Tubal ligation is a surgical procedure that people use as birth control for women. The fallopian tubes are tied, clamped, cut, banded, or sealed close in this procedure.
This method prevents an egg from moving from the ovary through the fallopian tube, where it could meet sperm. In avoiding pregnancy, it aims to prevent sperm from travelling up the tube to meet the egg.
Yearly, an estimated 700,000 American women undergo tubal ligation. It is because the said method is the most common form of contraception in the U.S.
However, experts do not guarantee tubal ligation to be 100% effective at preventing pregnancy. They claim there is still a slight risk of becoming pregnant even after tubal ligation. Aside from that, tubal ligation will not protect you from STDs. You may still contract STDs such as HIV, which causes AIDS.
Vasectomy
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Vasectomy is the simplest and most common permanent sterilisation for men. According to experts, the method is generally safer and less painful than sterilisation in women. It only requires cutting and sealing or blocking the vas deferens, the male reproductive system tubes that carry sperm.
The procedure also prevents the transport of sperm out of the testes. In addition, surgery does not affect the man’s ability to make orgasm or ejaculate. If you undergo vasectomy, you may still release fluid after orgasm. However, its contents do not have active sperm.
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