Birth control, synonymous with contraception, is a regimen of one or more actions, devices, or medications followed in order to deliberately prevent or reduce the likelihood of pregnancy or childbirth.
Contraception may refer specifically to mechanisms that are intended to reduce the likelihood of a sperm cell fertilizing the egg.
Different methods of birth control have been established through the years and they are deviated in Physical, Barrier and Hormonal Methods.
Physical methods
Physical methods may work in a variety of ways, among them: physically preventing sperm from entering the female reproductive tract; hormonally preventing ovulation from occurring; making the woman's reproductive tract inhospitable to sperm; or surgically altering the male or female reproductive tract to induce sterility. Some methods use more than one mechanism.
Barrier methods
Are methods placing a physical impediment to the movement of sperm into the female reproductive tract.
The most popular barrier method is the male condom, a sheath placed over the penis.
Cervical barriers are devices that are contained completely within the vagina, such as the sponge, the cervical cap and the diaphragm. With the use of them, we can combine an agent called spermicides, for better protection.
Hormonal methods
There are varieties of methods for hormonal contraception.
We have the Contraceptive pill (a combination of Estrogens and Progesterone), the Patch, the Vaginal Ring and the monthly injecting hormonal agent.
The other method is the Progesterone only Pill, “Mini-Pill”. The various progestin-only methods may cause irregular bleeding during use.
The Morning after Pill
It contains Levogestrel, witch is a progestin agent. The method of this is to prevent implantation of the embryo by making the endometrium unfriendly. The sooner after intercourse is the better.
Intrauterine methods- IUD
These are contraceptive devices which are placed inside the uterus. There are two main types of intrauterine contraceptives: those that contain copper, and those that release progestin, Levogestrel.
We can place the IUD during the menstruation, as an office procedure, without any anesthesia, because the internal os of the cervix is open.
The method gives us a 93% of success.
Sterilization
Tubal ligation for women and vasectomy for men is the surgical method for sterilization. The fallopian tubes may be tied, cut, clamped, or blocked. This serves to prevent sperm from joining the unfertilized egg. Sterilization should be considered permanent.
Lactation
Most breastfeeding women have a period of infertility after the birth of their child.
The chance of a lactating woman to get pregnant is lower that in non-lactating period, but the rates aren’t totally zero.