Yale researchers evaluate safety of popular sterilization method
A recent study co-led by Yale researchers in collaboration with peers at the University of California, San Diego found that hysteroscopy, a banned popular birth control method of sterilization, is not “generally harmful.”
When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, first approved hysteroscopic sterilization in 2002, it was advertised as a less invasive type of permanent contraception called Essure. Initially, it was considered a turning point in birth control, but after thousands of adverse effects including pelvic pain, abnormal bleeding and the need for additional surgeries following the Essure procedure were reported, the FDA mandated a clinical trial to reassess the product’s safety. Essure was discontinued in 2018, and the study was ultimately left unfinished.
The paper detailing this current study’s findings was published on Feb. 3 in Obstetrics and Gynecology. It details that the procedure itself is not generally harmful. This research was led by Aileen Gariepy, associate