New Delhi: All this time, male birth control has been mainly reliant on condoms.
For those willing to undergo a minor surgery have the option for vasectomy, that results in male sterilisation.
In a major development in this field, researchers have now developed a gel which, when applied to a male’s bare shoulders, can help reduce sperm production.
This hormone-based treatment, carried out by researchers from National Institutes of Health (NIH) — primary agency of the US government for biomedical and public health research — has shown extremely promising results in clinical trials.
The phase 2 trial results for the new hormonal gel were presented at Endocrine Society’s conference in Boston recently.
The trial, part of NIH’s Contraceptive Development Programme, involved 222 men aged between 18 and 50. The participants applied 5 millilitres of the gel (about a teaspoon) to their shoulder blades daily.
The gel is applied to the shoulders because this is one part of the skin which is suitable for transdermal delivery of medication.
Skin on the shoulder has a good balance of thickness and blood flow, hence the hormones can be absorbed effectively into the bloodstream.
Researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) presented promising phase 2 trial results for the new hormonal gel at the Endocrine Society’s conference in Boston.
The trial, part of NIH’s Contraceptive Development Program, involved 222 men aged 18 to 50. The participants applied 5 millilitres of the gel (about a teaspoon) to their shoulder blades daily.
As per preliminary findings, the gel works faster than expected.
The average time to reach this level was reported to be eight weeks, which represented a significant improvement over previous methods.
Normal sperm counts range from 15 million to 200 million per millilitre, without contraception.
The new gel’s effectiveness is encouraging, and more son as previous attempts involved higher doses of testosterone, which can cause side effects.
The new gel combines testosterone and Nestorone, a synthetic hormone called segesterone acetate, allowing it to act faster and with lower testosterone doses.
Participants in the trials have thus far maintained normal sexual function with low blood testosterone levels.
Researchers are monitoring the gel’s effectiveness in preventing pregnancy.
Male participants have to be in committed, monogamous relationships, and need their partners’ consent to use the gel as the sole birth control method.
Couples must have sex at least once a month for a year, with men undergoing periodic sperm count tests to gauge fertility.
