What you need to know about the risks of Essure birth control
The Food and Drug Administration announced this week that it is going to examine the safety and effectiveness of controversial permanent birth control method Essure. Below, we’ve outlined the basics of everything you need to know.
What is Essure?
Essure isn’t so much birth control as it is non-surgical female sterilization. Here’s how it works, according to the FDA: a woman who decides she doesn’t want kids/any more kids goes to her health care provider, who inserts these flexible nickel coils into her fallopian tubes. Over time, tissue forms around the implants, making it next to impossible for eggs to travel down the tubes. This form of birth control is meant to be permanent, and it’s the only FDA-approved method in the U.S.
The pharmaceutical giant behind Essure, Bayer HealthCare, says it’s the only non-surgical permanent form of birth control you can get that is also free of hormones.
What’s the potential danger?
There have been at least 5,000 complaints to the FDA from women who have used the birth control method, including those who got infections, pelvic pain, and even became pregnant after getting the coils implanted, according to the FDA. Four women have died from its use due to infections and perforations, the agency says, and others have reported that the coils move through the fallopian tubes and perforate other parts of the pelvis. There has as recently as April been a reported death linked to the birth control, though Bayer denies any connection.
The complaints have been so significant that on Sept. 24, the FDA’s Obstetrics and Gynecology Devices Panel will hold a meeting in Washington open to the public. The hope is to get patients and researchers to talk about their own experiences with the device and its possible dangers.
It’s gained so much attention that human rights lawyer Erin Brockovich (yes, that Erin Brockovich) is spearheading a campaign for women who have had adverse effects from the B.C. method.
What Bayer Says
The company behind Essure says they’ve been working with the FDA since the beginning and are open to the discussion this fall over its safety and efficiency.
“Bayer has been in regular communication with the FDA about the risk-benefit profile of Essure and the informational needs of both healthcare providers and patients,” the company told ABC 15 in an email earlier this week. They went on to say that Essure is “the only FDA-approved non-surgical option for women who have completed their families and want permanent contraception.”
What to do if you have it
If you haven’t had any symptoms like nausea, headache, or abdominal pain, it’s still best to talk to your doctor or health care provider to find out what’s going on.
Also keep abreast on the most recent FDA news on Essure here.
If you’re in the market for a long-acting (but not permanent) birth control option, there’s also the IUD – it’s a tiny device like Paraguard (non-hormonal) implanted in your uterus that is 99% effective in preventing pregnancy.
But as always, it’s best to talk these things over with your partner and your doctor.
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