Implanon, New Contraceptive Implant Approved
Among the 38 million American women using some form of birth control, some have waited patiently for a new implantable contraceptive device to become available to them. And new contraceptive that is implanted in the upper arm and remains effective for three years will be made widely available in the United States early next year, filling a gap in birth control options for women since Norplant was taken off the market in 2002.
Implanon (etonogestrel implant) a contraceptive implant, about the size of a matchstick, has been approved by the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA). It is the world’s only single-rod implantable contraceptive.
Implanon is the name of this implantable contraceptive that was launched in 1998, and is already used by 2.5 million women in over 30 countries. It’s designed to prevent pregnancy where it releases a continuous dosage of the synthetic hormone progestin for three full years after a doctor places it under the skin of a woman’s arm. That means three years of not worrying about taking birth control pills daily, or changing Ortho-Evra patches weekly, or replacing Nuva-rings monthly. The device is one-and-a-half inches long (about the size of a matchstick).
A fertility expert who helped conduct the clinical trials on Implanon told Senay it takes about a minute for the doctor to use a simple instrument to insert it, after the woman receives a local anesthetic. With it’s 99% contraceptive protection, implanon will be the first contraceptive implant to be sold in the United States since 2000, when Wyeth Pharmaceuticals stopped US sales of Norplant. Norplant worked for up to seven years, or four years more than Implanon, but spawned lawsuits by women injured while having its six rods removed or disturbed by side effects.
Implanon, made by Organon of Roseland, N.J., joins the ranks of increasingly advanced birth control options on the market for women. In the past five years, new birth control devices have included a skin patch that is changed once a month, an intrauterine device that releases low-dose hormones and lasts five years, and a product called the NuvaRing, also made by Implanon, that is inserted into the vagina once a month and releases progestin.
“Implanon fills a unique niche that has been empty for the past few years,” said Dr. David Grimes, a contraceptive expert and clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Birth control pills have lower rates of effectiveness, in part because a woman must remember to take the pill at the same time every day.
“Implanon is in the top tier of effectiveness,” said Grimes, who is also vice president of Biomedical Affairs at the Family Health Initiative, a nonprofit organization that helps develop contraceptives in the United States. “It is as effective as male and female surgical sterilization and implantable uterine devices, or IUDs.”
Women who use Implanon are more prone to spotting at unpredictable times and they need to be prepared for that unpredictability. There also are the risks of side effects that come with any contraceptive, including blood clotting. But on the plus side, besides it’s effectivenes, it also is designed to maintain sufficient hormone levels to help preserve bone strength and the integrity of other organs, including the breasts. And, of course, if a woman is suited to this product, the convenience of it may be very appealing.
Organon did not release the price of Implanon. Spokeswoman Frances DeSena said it would be competitive with other hormonal contraceptives, according to The Associated Press. Implanon is “highly unlikely to bring new contraceptive users into the market but it will give women who have been using the pill for a few years another option,” said Kirsten Moore, president of the Reproductive Health Technologies Project.
Organon USA will carry out a national clinical training program to teach health care professionals how to insert and remove the rod. Only those trained through Organon sponsored programs will be authorised to prescribe Implanon.
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[...] “These data suggest that the US appears to be following patterns seen in other developed countries where increased availability and increased use of modern contraceptives have been primarily responsible for declines in teenage pregnancy rates,” the researcherss write. “Our findings,” they conclude, “raise questions about current U.S. government policies that promote abstinence from sexual activity as the primary strategy to prevent adolescent pregnancy.” Among younger teens 15 to 17 years old, increased contraceptive use was responsible for 77 percent of the pregnancy risk decline while decreased sexual activity was responsible for 23 percent of the decline. The report cited increases in the use of both condoms and birth control pills. In addition, more young people are combining methods for extra protection, it said. [...]
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