Many unfamiliar with safety, effectiveness of IUDs

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A small survey of young pregnant women found that just half had ever heard of an intrauterine device (IUD), and only a minority was aware of the contraceptives' record of safety and effectiveness.

IUDs are T-shaped devices placed in the uterus that cause changes in the lining of the uterus that prevent eggs from being fertilized. They can be left in the uterus for years and are one of the most effective types of birth control.

While IUDs are popular elsewhere, just 2.1 percent of women in the U.S. use this type of birth control, Drs. Nancy L. Stanwood and Karen A. Bradley of the University of Rochester Medical Center note. Stanwood has worked as a consultant for IUD maker FEI Women's Health, which did not fund the current study.

To investigate young women's perceptions of IUDs, the researchers surveyed 190 pregnant women seeking prenatal care or abortions on their knowledge and use of contraceptives. The average age of the subjects was 20 years old, 47 percent had given birth before and 91 percent said the current pregnancy was not planned.

The women surveyed said safety and effectiveness were their most important concerns in choosing a contraceptive. Just over half said they wanted to wait at least four years before becoming pregnant again, while 27 percent said they never wanted to become pregnant again.

Of the 50 percent who had heard of IUDs, 71 percent did not know that they were safe, and 58 percent did not know they were effective. Overall, 13 percent said they planned to use an IUD after their current pregnancy.

IUDs only need to be inserted once, making them much easier to use than, for example, the contraceptive pill, which must be taken every day with a prescription refilled every month, Stanwood and Bradley note.

"Young women choosing contraception after a pregnancy would benefit from counseling on the relative safety and effectiveness of IUDs, allowing them to make fully informed contraception decisions," they conclude.

SOURCE: Obstetrics & Gynecology, December 2006.