Morgan BellNew contraceptive drug for men
May 1st 2006 14:58
Since the invention of rubber condoms in the 1840s and the development of vasectomy in the 1890s, medical developments had been all quiet on the male contraceptive front. Now, after a 16 year study, researchers from the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) and the ANZAC Research Institute, University of Sydney, Australia are proud to announce that their search is finally bearing fruit.
The new contraception is likely to come in the form of a pill, similar to the Oral Contraceptive Pill for women. Pills will contain a combination of hormones including androgen, progestagen, and a small amount of testosterone. Progesterone may be used instead of testosterone to minimize side effects of hormonal treatment. The drug will fully inhibit sperm production, leaving ejaculate essentially sperm-free (under 3 million sperm per millilitre of semen).
With the current statistic of 1 in 10 Australian men being infertile, it is important that any male contraceptives are safely reversible. Androgen / androgen-progestagen treatments have been tested on around 1500 men since 1990. Results show that sperm counts return to normal (approximately 20 million sperm per millilitre of semen) after about 3.4 months.
The pill is likely to be on the market within the decade.
(Image from flickr.com)
The new contraception is likely to come in the form of a pill, similar to the Oral Contraceptive Pill for women. Pills will contain a combination of hormones including androgen, progestagen, and a small amount of testosterone. Progesterone may be used instead of testosterone to minimize side effects of hormonal treatment. The drug will fully inhibit sperm production, leaving ejaculate essentially sperm-free (under 3 million sperm per millilitre of semen).
With the current statistic of 1 in 10 Australian men being infertile, it is important that any male contraceptives are safely reversible. Androgen / androgen-progestagen treatments have been tested on around 1500 men since 1990. Results show that sperm counts return to normal (approximately 20 million sperm per millilitre of semen) after about 3.4 months.
The pill is likely to be on the market within the decade.
(Image from flickr.com)
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Comment by Lia
The human body is a strange strange thing.
Comment by Scott
Scott
Punk Blog
Comment by liz
the male pill will put more contraceptive responsibility on men. this gender balance is, of course, a good thing, but would you trust your man enough to be sure that he remembers to take his pill daily?
Comment by tokes