Understanding Contraception and Family Planning Methods

Introduction

Hello everyone, I am Dr. Sneha Deshpande, working as a Senior Consultant at Momstory by Sahyadri Hospitals. Today, we will discuss contraception or family planning methods.

What is Family Planning or Contraception?

Family planning or contraception refers to methods that prevent unwanted pregnancy. Using contraception protects you from the mental and physical trauma that an unplanned pregnancy can cause. It is often said that pregnancy should be a choice, not a chance.

Why Use Contraception?

Most people need family planning methods at some point in their life. Family planning methods are broadly divided into two categories: temporary methods and permanent methods.

Temporary Methods

Temporary methods allow you to prevent pregnancy when it’s not desired and plan it when you are ready. Some commonly used methods are:

1. Safe Period Method: In this method, you avoid intercourse during the fertile period. However, the failure rate is around 20%, making it less reliable.
2. Withdrawal Method: This involves withdrawal of the penis from the vagina before ejaculation. This method also has a failure rate of about 20% and requires a lot of patience and motivation.
3. Barrier Methods: These include male and female condoms, which are widely used. They provide additional protection from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), but the failure rate is between 10-14%.
4. Spermicidal Gels and Sponges: While they offer some protection, there is a higher risk of infections and the failure rate is quite high.

Hormonal Methods

Hormonal methods include:

1. Contraceptive Pills: These can be combined estrogen-progesterone pills or progesterone-only pills. This is an effective method with a low failure rate of 1-2%. However, it requires daily consumption and may have minor side effects like acne or weight gain. It can also help women with conditions like heavy menstrual flow, PCOS, or ovarian cysts.
2. Progesterone-Only Pills (Breastfeeding Pills): This is a good method for breastfeeding mothers, though it can sometimes lead to irregular bleeding.
3. Progesterone Injection (DMPA): These injections are administered every three months and have a failure rate of around 4%. However, this method should not be used for more than two years and may cause side effects like irregular periods or weight gain.
4. Copper IUD (Intrauterine Device): This is a safe and long-term method with a low failure rate of 1-2%. While there may be a risk of heavier periods initially, newer types of IUDs like the silver-lined or hormonal IUDs minimize this issue.

Permanent Methods

Permanent methods include:

1. Vasectomy (for men)
2. Tubectomy (for women)

These methods are irreversible and have a very low failure rate of 1-2%.

Emergency Contraception

Emergency contraception is used in cases of unplanned intercourse or accidental situations such as rape. Tablets must be taken within 72 hours to prevent unwanted pregnancy, but they have a failure rate of around 5%.