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First Doctor

6 Oct, 22 tweets, 9 min read

12 ways to prevent pregnancy you should know

1. Male condom
2. Female barriers
3. The pill
4. Hormone patches
5. Vaginal rings
6. Mini-pill
7. Injectables
8. Implants
9. Intrauterine devices
10. Sterilization
11. Abstinence
12. Emergency contraception

A thread 🧵

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Male condoms: Failure rate 5%

Condoms are cheap & popular & have the additional advantage of preventing sexually transmitted diseases (STI's) like HIV & hepatitis.

But condoms can burst or slip off during sex & some men may be allergic to the latex or spermicides in condoms. 2/

Female barriers e.g. diaphragm/female condoms: Failure rate 15%

They are inserted immediately before sex. Also protect from STI's.

But they can irritate your vagina & increase the risk of urinary tract infections. 3/

The pill (combined oral contraceptive, COC): Failure rate 1%

Contains estrogen & progesterone. Taken regularly at almost same time every day. Easy to use.

Not be to used in women with heart problems like hypertension, migraine with aura, heavy smokers, etc

Ask your doctor. 4/

Combined hormone patches: Failure rate 1%

Placed just under the skin (transdermal). Applied weekly for 3 weeks followed by 1 patch-free week. Has better compliance

Same risks & benefits as COCs above. 5/

Combined hormone vaginal rings e.g. NuvaRing: Failure rate 1%

Placed inside the vagina for 21 days & removed for 7 days. Excellent cycle control especially for people with irregular periods. But expensive.

Same risks & benefits ass COCs. 6/

Mini-pills or progestogen-only pills e.g. Cerazette: Failure rate 3%

Taken every day without a break. Minimal side effects compared to COCs

Ideal for;
- breastfeeding women
- women at older age &
- women with heart problems 7/

Injectable progestins e.g. Depo-provera & Noristerat: Failure rate 2%

One injection lasts for 3 months (Depo-provera) or 2 months (Noristerat). Depo-provera is good for painful/heavy periods.

Can cause weight gain, delay in return to fertility & persistent irregular periods. 8/

Implants e.g. Implanon: Failure rate 0.1

Inserted under the skin of your upper arm. Last 3 years. Good as a long term contraceptive method for those who don't like taking pills

Can also cause irregular bleeding. 9/

Intrauterine devices: Failure rate 0.1% (Mirena), 0.8% (copper IUD)

Copper IUD lasts 10 years. Period may become heavy/painful

Mirena lasts 5 years. Can treat heavy/painful periods. But may cause acne & mood swings

Both effective, but not good in situations like STI's. 10/

Sterilization: is a PERMANENT method!

For women: Failure rate 0.13%, e.g.
*Hysterectomy - removal of the womb
*Tubal ligation - tying the Fallopian tubes

For men: Failure rate 0.02%, e.g
*Vasectomy (dividing the sperm tubes of each side to prevent sperm release during sex). 11/

Abstinence: Failure rate 0.00% 🙄

It means you sex at all. It's the only 100% effective method IF practiced.

But most people who intend to practice abstinence fail to actually do so.

And they often fail to use condoms or other contraceptive methods when they do have sex. 12/

Emergency contraceptives

Used after unprotected sex, or after condom failure

2 types;
1. Hormonal emergency contraceptives e.g. within 1day (Postinor), 3days (Levonelle), or 5days (EllaOne) after

2. IUD for emergency contraception e.g. Copper IUD (up to 5days) after. 13/

NOTE

1️⃣ Failure rates given in this thread are in number of failures per 100 woman-years!

This means the number of pregnancies that would occur if 100 women used a particular method for one year.

So, the smaller the failure rate, the more effective the method. 14/

2️⃣ This tweet only highlighted key information about the different contraceptive methods.

You can always get details about any particular method you're interested in.

Just ask your doctor. 16/

3️⃣ There are other useful methods, such as;

- Withdrawal: Penis withdrawn from vagina immediately before ejaculation, &

- Natural family planning e.g. avoiding sex during fertile periods

Most couples simply can't stay away from sex, which makes these methods less reliable. 16/

4️⃣ All contraceptive methods have their good sides & bad sides.

But there is a method suitable for you.

Which one is best for you depends on your peculiar concerns.

Your healthcare provider will always put you through & help you make the best decision. 17/

Even in this pandemic, nobody should have to be pregnant with a baby they really don't desire.

Appropriate use of contraceptives or family planning is the way out!

Let's prevent unwanted pregnancies! 17/

In some places where contraception can't even be a topic of public discussion, there are documented evidence of higher rates of STI's & teen pregnancies.

If I have any way, people should know about contraception even before they become sexually active. 18/