What is Contraception?
Contraception is the prevention of conception or prevention of pregnancy.
There are different types of contraceptive methods and these can be classified as:
- Hormonal methods: pills, injections, vaginal rings, patches, implants and the hormonal intrauterine device (e.g. the Mirena)
- Non-hormonal Methods: Condoms, diaphragms, caps and the copper intrauterine devices (e.g the Copper IUD)
- Permanent Surgical Methods: female steriliastion (tubal ligation) and vasectomy
How do contraceptives work?
Contraceptive methods work in a variety of ways.
Hormonal methods prevent ovulation to varying degrees depending on the type of method. They also thicken cervical mucus, thus impairing sperm passage into the womb. Others cause the lining of the womb to become thinner, thus making it less favourable for implantation.
Barrier methods such as condoms, caps and diaphragms block sperms from meeting with eggs. The copper IUD prevents fertilization through toxicity to both the sperms and eggs.
Female steriliastion blocks an egg that has been ovulated from passing along the fallopian tube into the womb. Vasectomy prevents sperms from getting into the ejaculate or semen.
Contraceptive Choices
Your contraceptive choice is best made in consultation with your doctor or nurse. It depends on a variety of factors, which may include:
- your general health and concurrent use of certain medicines
- frequency of sexual activity
- child spacing intention and maintaining the ability to have more children in future
- The need for protection from sexually transmitted infections.
Age alone is not an absolute contraindication for use of any method of choice. However, certain factors may be taken into consideration with respect to age.
Benefits of Contraception
Use of contraception comes with many benefits for couples.
- Contraception allows couples to make reproductive choices such as:
- when they want to start a family
- the number of children that they want
- how far apart they want to space them
- When they want to stop having children.
- Contraception reduces teenage pregnancy. This is important because:
- teenagers are more likely to experience pregnancy-related medical conditions as their bodies are not ready for childbearing
- babies born to teenage mothers are more likely to have health problems such as being born prematurely and being underweight
- teenagers are more likely to experience relationship and social problems when they get pregnant
- they are more likely to have their education and ambitions interrupted, which has a negative impact on their future
- Condoms do not only provide contraception. They have an additional benefit of offering protecting users against HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.
Visit us at our Walvis Bay Practice or our Windhoek Practice for a more comprehensive discussion about your contraceptive choices with our gynaecologists.
