A new method of male contraception is expected to become available within the next two years.
The contraception, which is as effective as a vasectomy, will be reversible and will have little or no side-effects.
Stellenbosch University urologist, Dr Amir Zarrabi said that if successful, the new male contraceptive will change the field of contraception.
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It will give couples a lot of flexibility. They will have a safe and reliable form of contraception with no hormonal effects or other side-effects that can be reversed when they want to start a family, Zarrabi said.
The new contraceptive method, Vasalgel, which is currently being tested by the American Parsemus Foundation, is a type of no-scalpel vasectomy.
Vasalgel blocks the flow of sperm from the testicles to the penis like a vasectomy, but instead of severing the tube that carries sperm, a gel is injected into the tube, forming a barrier that blocks sperm, but allows other fluids to pass through.
Zarrabi, who specialises in male fertility and microsurgery at the Division of Urology atStellenbosch University, said that unlike having a vasectomy, Vasalgel did not require surgery and did not carry the risks that came with a vasectomy.
Although a vasectomy is a small procedure, it does carry some risks, like bleeding or infection and there is also a small chance that a man might experience post-vasectomy pain due to pressure build-up in the testicles.
Vasalgel can be used as a short or long-term form of contraception.
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When a couple wants to conceive, the Vasalgel can be flushed from the vas deferens with an injection of a sodium bicarbonate solution.
Although Vasalgel has already been tested on humans, reversal has only been attempted in animal studies where it showed rapid restoration of sperm flow.
Zarrabi warned that even though Vasalgel blocked the flow of sperm, it did not offer any protection against the transmission of sexually transmitted infections such as HIV.
Previous efforts to develop a male contraceptive focused on hormonal manipulation, similar to the way that the contraceptive pill for women worked.
The male hormone testosterone is linked to sperm production and by lowering the testosterone level in a man’s testicles you can prevent the production of sperm, Zarrabi said.
It sounds counter-intuitive, but to lower testosterone in the testicles, you have to increase testosterone levels in the blood. But study after study showed there were too many unpleasant side-effects, said Zarrabi.
Researchers tried to tweak the method by adding other hormones, like the female hormone progesterone, but at the end of the day it still had too many side-effects and wasn’t effective enough.”
Vasalgel blocks the flow of sperm from the testicles to the penis.