IUD Birth Control Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

IUD Birth Control - Case Study Example An IUD is positioned in the uterus by a healthcare specialist to prevent unwanted pregnancies and/or for family planning purposes. There are two types of IUD contraceptives; Mirena and Paragard (Grimes, 2007). Mirena is the type of IUD that contains hormones. Its functionality depends on levonorgestrel, a hormone released from the IUD once inserted into the uterus. In other words, Mirena is a hormonal IUD which prevents pregnancies for the period it remains inserted into the uterus. The effectiveness of this IUD contraceptive can last for up to a period of five years, although this effectiveness is not a hundred percent guaranteed. However, Mirena is slightly more effective compared to copper IUD. Paragard is another IUD contraceptive, and it is most commonly used compared to the hormonal IUD. In this IUD, the T-shaped plastic device is wrapped with a copper wire, preventing pregnancies by killing sperm through the toxicity of the copper wire wound around the plastic device’s stem (Grimes, 2007). This type of IUD can remain inserted into the uterus for up to a period of ten years, the period throughout which it remains effective. Just like the hormonal IUD, Paragard’s effectiveness is not a hundred percent guaranteed, since cases of pregnancies have been reported even with this IUD still fitted into the uterus. Both the above identified IUD contraceptives (Mirena and Paragard) prevent pregnancies from occurring. They do so by hindering the egg fertilization by the sperm. The mode of functionality is ether damaging the sperm to a point that it cannot fertilize the egg, or killing it altogether, meaning that the fertilization cannot, therefore, take place. Mirena damages or kills the sperm using a form of hormone progestin known as levonorgestrel (Fritz & Speroff, 2011). Mirena also thickens the mucus found in the cervix, making it sticky and unfavorable for sperm to get to the uterus. Over and above damaging or killing the sperm, Mirena makes