Contraception

Birth control, also known as contraception and fertility control, is a method or device used to prevent pregnancy.

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Contraceptive Patch

The oral contraceptive pill was used widely because of its high efficacy. However, poor patient compliance inevitably led to higher-than-ideal pregnancy rates, as users often forgot to take the pill at the right time, to take it every day, or had gastrointestinal conditions which interfered with its digestion and absorption.

The Male Contraceptive Pill: is it possible?

What are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Contraceptive Implants?

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Contraceptive Vaginal Ring

Do Contraceptive Injections Affect Bones?

How Does the Progestogen-only Pill Work?

Natural Family Planning: an Overview

Natural Family Planning: Advantages and Disadvantages

Contraception and STIs

Contraception in Over 50s

Long-Acting Reversible Contraception (LARC) Types

Female Sterilization

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Advantages and Disadvantages of the Progestogen-Only Pill (POP)

IUD: Advantages and Disadvantages

IUS: Advantages and Disadvantages

Intrauterine Device (IUD) and Intrauterine System (IUS) Differences

How Does the Contraceptive Vaginal Ring Work?

How Does the Contraceptive Implant Work?

How is the Contraceptive Implant Put in and Taken Out?

How Effective are Different Types of Contraception?

How to insert a diaphragm, cap or vaginal ring

How to Use the Patch

What is the Contraceptive Patch?

Types of Contraception

Types of Combined Birth Control Pills

Male Condom versus Female Condom

How Does The Combined Pill Work?

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Combined Pill

Emergency Contraception

Does Breastfeeding Act as a Contraceptive?

Condoms for Oral and Anal Sex

Condoms - Advantages and Disadvantages

How Effective are Condoms?

Combined Pill FAQs

Blood Clot Risk and the Oral Contraceptive Pill

The Effects of Continuous Contraceptive Pill Taking

Latest Contraception News and Research

Comprehensive peri-operative care guidelines address needs of transgender and gender-diverse patients

New guidance on peri-operative care of transgender and gender-diverse individuals is today published in Anaesthesia (the journal of the Association of Anaesthetists) to guide best practice to ensure the safety and dignity of transgender and gender-diverse people in the peri-operative period.

23 Jul 2024

Long-acting injectable CAB-LA safe for HIV PrEP during pregnancy, study finds

Long-acting injectable cabotegravir (CAB-LA) was safe and well tolerated as HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) before and during pregnancy in the follow-up phase of a global study among cisgender women.

23 Jul 2024

Hydrogel implant technology offers new hope for women seeking reversible sterilization and endometriosis treatment

Hydrogel implants for reversible fallopian tube occlusion, providing contraception and preventing endometriosis.

19 Jul 2024

Hydrogel implant for fallopian tubes provides dual solution for contraception and endometriosis

Hydrogels have a variety of use cases, including contact lenses, delivering doses of medication within the body, moisturisers, water storage in soil, cleaning polluted water and as gelling and thickening agents.

17 Jul 2024

If lawsuit ends federal mandates on birth control coverage, states will have the say

David Engler had been pretty sure he didn't want children. Then a frustrating school day two years ago helped seal the deal for the now 43-year-old substitute teacher.

9 Jul 2024

Planned parenthood to blitz GOP seats, betting abortion fears can sway voters

Planned Parenthood is preparing a seven-figure campaign blitz to oust GOP incumbents from California congressional seats, part of a larger national effort by the reproductive rights group to prevent a Republican majority from passing abortion restrictions, including a national ban.

8 Jul 2024

Beyond PMS: A poorly understood disorder means periods of despair for some women

For the most part, Cori Lint was happy. She worked days as a software engineer and nights as a part-time cellist, filling her free hours with inline skating and gardening and long talks with friends.

3 Jul 2024

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': SCOTUS ruling strips power from federal health agencies

In what will certainly be remembered as a landmark decision, the Supreme Court's conservative majority this week overruled a 40-year-old legal precedent that required judges in most cases to yield to the expertise of federal agencies.

28 Jun 2024

Republicans are downplaying abortion, but it keeps coming up

For generations, the GOP campaigned on eliminating the right to an abortion in the United States. Now, torn between a base that wants more restrictions on reproductive health care and a moderate majority that does not, it seems many Republicans would rather take an off-ramp than a victory lap.

28 Jun 2024

Rate of young women getting sterilized doubled after ‘Roe’ was overturned

Sophia Ferst remembers her reaction to learning that the Supreme Court had overturned Roe v. Wade: She needed to get sterilized.

27 Jun 2024

Battleground Wisconsin: Voters feel nickel-and-dimed by health care costs

The land of fried cheese curds and the Green Bay Packers is among a half-dozen battleground states that could determine the outcome of the expected November rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump — a contest in which the cost and availability of health care are emerging as defining issues.

27 Jun 2024

Ovary removal before menopause could accelerate brain degeneration

Premenopausal bilateral oophorectomy (PBO) is linked to reduced white matter integrity in the brain, particularly in women who undergo PBO before the age of 40, suggesting potential long-term cognitive impacts.

23 Jun 2024

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Live from Aspen: Health and the 2024 elections

The presidential election is less than five months away, and while abortion is the only health policy issue expected to play a leading role, others are likely to be raised in the presidential and down-ballot races.

21 Jun 2024

Rising syphilis cases highlight gaps in public knowledge on symptoms and treatment

Syphilis cases are on the rise around the globe, but many Americans don't know the symptoms.

12 Jun 2024

Does the menstrual cycle affect attention, anticipation, and spatial cognition in female athletes?

Researchers investigate whether cognitive performance fluctuates during the menstrual cycle and its potential impact athletic involvement and skill.

10 Jun 2024

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Nursing home staffing rules prompt pushback

It's not surprising that the nursing home industry is filing lawsuits to block new Biden administration rules requiring minimum staffing at facilities that accept federal dollars.

6 Jun 2024

Novel male contraceptive gel suppresses sperm production faster than similar birth control methods

A novel male contraceptive gel combining two hormones, segesterone acetate (named Nestorone) and testosterone, suppresses sperm production faster than similar experimental hormone-based methods for male birth control, according to a new study.

3 Jun 2024

Breakthrough male contraceptive gel shows rapid results in clinical trial

Male contraceptive gel combines hormones for faster sperm production suppression.

3 Jun 2024

Community pharmacists deliver cheaper, quality care for minor ailments, study shows

A recent study in ClinicoEconomics and Outcomes Research found that community pharmacists can provide high-quality, cost-effective care for minor ailments, reducing the financial burden on the healthcare system compared to primary care physicians, urgent care, and emergency departments.

2 Jun 2024

Non-hormonal sperm-specific approach offers a promising option for reversible male contraception

The world's population has increased by more than 2.6-fold in the last 60 years. The growing trend continues – projections indicate that the number of people living on our planet will grow to 9 billion by 2037 from 8 billion in 2022.

23 May 2024