Surgical Approaches

 

 

Tubal Ligation

 

Tubal ligation has been the mainstay permanent birth control approach for women. In fact a third of married women rely on this approach for their contraception. The procedure is very effective with only one failure per 200 women per year. The procedure, sometimes referred to as; “having the tubes tied”, involves the occlusion of a narrow section of the fallopian tubes closest to the uterus using either sutures, silicone rings or metal clips following by the cutting of the fallopian tubes. Electrocautery also is used by some surgeons to further improve the effectiveness of the procedure. The procedure is somewhat analogous to a vasectomy in men but is more invasive and costly.
 
Essure® procedure
 
This device was introduced as a less-invasive alternative to tubal ligation. The Essure device is an implant that goes into each fallopian tube and results in the inability for the egg to make its way to the uterine wall where impregnation would normally take place. The device is inserted transvaginally and does not require surgery. The Essure procedure offers high effectiveness with only 1 of every 500 women becoming pregnant over the course of a year.
 
Other
 
Other surgeries such as hysterectomy and endometrial ablation also generally render the patient sterile although these procedures are not employed as contraceptive measures but rather to deal with other conditions.

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