Injections, pills, heated briefs, rings… Still in the experimental phase, other means of contraception could soon see the light of day alongside current conventional methods.
- No male contraceptive pill is yet marketed to date, for lack of large-scale scientific tests.
- The Pearl index makes it possible to evaluate the effectiveness of a contraceptive method: it is the number of unwanted pregnancies divided by the number of months during which contraception is taken. The higher it is, the less effective the method. For example, a Pearl index of 2 means that 2 out of 100 women using the contraceptive method analyzed for a year were pregnant during the year.
Among the means of contraception intended for men and considered very reliable, there is the condom, of course (which also protects against infections and sexually transmitted diseases), the more radical vasectomy, which consists of cutting the vas deferens carrying the spermatozoa , or withdrawal during sexual intercourse – at the risk and peril of those who practice it, because it is lacking in 22% of cases, warns the High Authority for Health (HAS).
Other contraceptive methods could soon see the light of day, although they have not yet been officially validated, for lack of large-scale studies, or are still under development. We take stock.
Means available but not yet authorized
Heated briefs/boxers and the penis ring are based on the thermal method: the objective is to increase the temperature of the testicles by a few degrees so that spermatogenesis, i.e. the production of spermatozoa, is hindered. Clearly, these become inefficient if you wear the briefs or the ring at least 15 hours a day every day. A spermogram carried out three months later makes it possible to ensure that the number of spermatozoa has fallen below the contraceptive threshold. These thermal techniques have a particularly high success rate (more than 99%) and are reversible: spermatogenesis is restored a few months after having abandoned the underwear or the ring.
Still, these two methods, which remain very traditional (some even make them “home”), are far from being authorized on the market, due to insufficient evidence of effectiveness. The National Medicines Safety Agency even recently prohibits the sale and distribution of the Andro-Switch ringnot safe enough according to European regulations.
Means being tested
The pill for men consists, in theory, of taking synthetic hormones (testosterone or progesterone) orally that block the production of spermatozoa, but it has all the disadvantages that are known for the pill for women. Research is progressing nevertheless: if it has not yet been tested on humans, American researchers have developed a male contraceptive pill – non-hormonal, therefore without adverse effects – 99% effective… in mice.
Another hormonal contraceptive is to block spermatogenesis via weekly injections of testosterone. In 1996, a study on 400 couples promised an effectiveness rate of 98.6%, but nearly 30 years later, the method is still in the development stage: there are several side effects (acne, aggression, excessive libido, weight gain, even prostate cancer…) and the maximum recommended duration for this contraception is only 18 consecutive months. Still, the method, reversible, seems effective. Case to follow.
Contraceptive gels, with hormones and applied to the shoulder, or without hormones and injected directly into the vas deferens of the genital organs, are also being tested, particularly in India with the prototype called Risug (for Reversible Inhibition of Sperm Under Guidance). The future will tell us if they are reliable to the point of being marketed one day.
