Male contraceptive
Male contraception is going to become simpler, cheaper and safer by November this year.
Male contraception is going to become simpler, cheaper and safer by November when a revolutionary technique invented at IIT Kharagpur hits the market. A single injection, estimated to cost Rs 120, will be enough to make a man infertile for more than 10 years, unlike the currently available pills that need to be taken every day.
By lowering the dose, the period of contraception can be shortened. Also, the effects of the new drug, now into its third and final phase of clinical trials, can be reversed at any time with another injection.
“The contraceptive has no side-effects,” said Dr Sujoy K. Guha, professor of biomedical engineering, IIT-K, who led the team that developed the technique, named reversible inhibition of sperm under guidance or Risug. “It doesn’t affect the user’s libido, performance or sperm count.”
Risug has already been patented in India, the US and many other countries. The Mumbai-based Glenmark Laboratories Ltd has procured the right to manufacture and market the drug. “We expect to do that by mid-November,” said Rajesh Jhingan, vice-president, business development, GLL.
Risug uses two chemicals — styrene maleic anhydride and dimethyl sulphoxide — which are injected into each side of the vas deferens, the tube that transports semen from the testes to the penis.
“Within an hour, the drugs produce an electrical charge that nullifies the electrical charge of the spermatozoa, preventing it from penetrating the ovum,” Dr Guha said.
Men can leave the hospital immediately after an injection and resume their normal sex lives within a week.
The technique was developed over 25 years in collaboration with All India Institute of Medical Sciences and with support from the ministry of health and family planning.
