Page 33 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 20

Leadership
Health & Healing

Abortifacient Brief:

The Intrauterine Device

By Brian Clowes, PhD| January 5, 2022 | https://www.hli.org/

he intrauterine device • It releases ions that interfere local phenomenon. That these
(IUD) is a foreign body with fertilization devices prevent nidation [implanta-
inserted into the uter- • It thickens the cervical mucus tion] of an already fertilized ovum
Tus. IUDs are made of a • It inhibits sperm capabilities has been accepted as the most likely
non-reactive plastic such as poly- These are all purely contraceptive mechanism of action.”2 The Food
ethylene and may include active effects. and Drug Administration (FDA)
chemicals or elements such as pro- concurred in this assessment, find-
gesterone or copper which slowly But IUDs also irritate the endo- ing that “IUDs seem to interfere in
diffuse into the uterus over a period metrium (the lining of the uterus) some manner with the implantation
of several years. and make it inhospitable to the of the fertilized egg in the lining of
blastocyst (the very early developing the uterine cavity. The IUD does
Is the IUD Abortifacient? human being), which is an abortifa- not prevent ovulation.”3
Short answer: sometimes. cient effect.
Nothing has changed. The patient
The intrauterine device has several Nearly half a century ago, the information pamphlets for all of
contraceptive (non-abortive) effects American Medical Association the IUDs made today describe in
• It prevents sperm from fertiliz- recognized that “the action of the detail this abortifacient action. For
ing ova IUDs would seem to be a simple example, the PIP for the Skyla IUD

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