Medical doctors at the Indian Council of Medical Research have completed a clinical trial for a new male birth control that will involve syringe shots directly into the penis.
According to The Hindustan Times, this new medical product could prevent men from getting women pregnant and could last for 13 years- and all it needed was permission from the Indian government before it enters the market.
The procedure called the reversible inhibition of sperm under guidance or RISUG is a painful and invasive one which involves a polymer being delivered via injection into the semen-producing glad, vas deferens, which is located on the penis near the testicles. It is an alternative to surgical vasectomy.
“The product is ready, with only regulatory approvals pending with the Drugs Controller. The trials are over, including extended, phase 3 clinical trials for which 303 candidates were recruited with 97.3% success rate and no reported side-effects. The product can safely be called the world’s first male contraceptive,” said Dr RS Sharma, senior scientist with ICMR, who has been spearheading the trials.
“It is effective for at least 13 years once injected. In clinical studies on mice, it has been proven to be a reliable spacing method, and we will be initiating human studies soon to prove that in humans also, it can be used as an effective spacing method,” said Sharma.
“It’s the first in the world from India so we have to be extra careful about approval. We are looking at all aspects, especially the good manufacturing practice (GMP) certification that won’t raise any questions about its quality,” said VG Somani, the drug controller general of India.
