Birth Control

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Birth Control Implant

What Is the Birth Control Implant?

The implant is a very small plastic device that is made with progestin. It works like contraceptive pills to prevent pregnancy. The implant is inserted in the inner part of the upper arm, where it can stay in place for up to 3 years.

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Effectiveness

Perfect user: A person who uses their method of pregnancy prevention correctly all of the time.

With perfect use, the implant is 99%+ effective.

This mean that if 100 women use the implant, it is inserted correctly by the clinician, and it is working perfectly for her, only 1 woman (probably no women) out of that group will get pregnant in 1 year.

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Advantages

  • The implant is easy to use.
  • The implant is very good at preventing pregnancy.
  • The implant does not interrupt having sex.
  • The implant does not cause serious health problems in most women.
  • The implant can be used by women who cannot take pregnancy prevention methods that have estrogen in them.

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Possible Side Effects

  • Irregular bleeding
  • Weight gain
  • Slight headache
  • Acne
  • Mood changes
  • Complications in the arm from the insertion of the implant

Important: Some women have the implant removed when they have any of these side effects. The side effects won't hurt you or stop you from having a baby in the future. They usually go away in 1 to 3 months. If they bother you or don't go away, go back to your clinician so that you can talk about other methods of pregnancy prevention.

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Possible Warning Signs

Some signs of possible serious side effects are:

  • Dizziness
  • Numbness in arms or legs
  • Abdominal pain that is severe
  • Chest pain
  • Bad headache
  • Eye problems
  • Bad leg pain, swelling, or redness

Having any of these warning signs of a serious health problem from using the implant is very unusual. However, if you should have one or more of them, go to your clinician or an emergency room right away.

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To Learn More

To learn more about implants, go to:

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