For a long time there were only two methods of contraception that belonged to righteous men.
They could either wear a condom or undergo a surgery called a vasectomy, which closes the tubes that carry sperm to the penis. Contraceptive pills and pills for men are still being developed.
However, a male contraceptive is being introduced in India soon.
Will this be a contraceptive method that will be successful for men?
Developed by Sujoy Gaha, a 78-year-old biomedical engineer based in Delhi, the vaccine is a single-shot injection that is injected into the ducts that carry sperm to the penis.
Administered under local anesthesia, the vaccine is non-hormonal and researchers claim that a single shot will remain effective for up to 13 years.
After several years of testing on humans, this drug called ‘Rezag’ is now ready to be introduced in the market. The vaccine is a gel that renders the sperm ineffective.
The effects of this drug are also reversible. However, the second part of the procedure, which reverses the drug’s effects, has not yet been tested in humans, although it has been successful in animals.
RS Sharma, a reproductive specialist at the Delhi-based Indian Council of Medical Research and the drug’s lead researcher, says, This male contraceptive injection will be world-class.
It is safe and effective and will work for a long time. We hope to get permission for its production in the near future.
Some scientists say that Rezig is an alternative to surgical vasectomy, the usefulness of which is not completely denied by Indian researchers.
“It needs to be evaluated more as a reversible contraceptive,” Michael Skinner, a reproductive specialist at Washington State University, told me. Right now it’s just applying a sterilization method. Before the injection can be used as a contraceptive, proof of its reversibility has to be provided.
Dr. Gaha agrees. “We’re not going to claim it’s reversible yet, but I’m sure we’ll be able to do so after testing it on humans.” Right now we are calling this drug a better solution for vasectomy.
It will not leave any painful effects on men and there will be no surgical marks.
In the same year, Dr. Sharma published the results of clinical trials of this drug. 139 married men with at least two children under the age of 41 were vaccinated and monitored for six months.
133 of these men’s wives did not get pregnant after sex. In the six men in whom the drug did not work, leakage from the injection syringe or from the tubes carrying the sperm was blamed.
Professor Page says that although the research on the drug so far has been positive, she thinks the number of participants in the trial, 139, is too small and the six-month period is still insufficient.