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Reversible Male Contraception With Gold Nanorods
MTorrice writes "Men's options for birth control have significant downsides: Condoms are not as effective as hormonal methods for women, and vasectomies require surgery and are irreversible. Doctors and scientists have for decades searched for more effective and desirable male contraception techniques. Researchers in China now propose a nonsurgical, reversible, and low-cost method. They show that infrared laser light heats up gold nanorods injected into mice testes, leading to reduced fertility (abstract) in the animals."
leading to reduced fertility
That's not difficult at all. Diet, temperatures, radiation, hormone therapy, steroids, and apparently mountain dew can all do that. 100% stopping fertility is the hard part. This discovery is absolutely nothing. "Reduced" fertility is not good enough and never will be. "This sort of works" is not a good marketing strategy for contraceptives. In women you try to stop 1 cell from doing something. In men, you have to stop 100% of trillions. It's basically impossible.
BPAS cites the average pregnancy success rate of a vasectomy reversal is around 55% if performed within 10 years, and drops to 25% if performed over 10 years
From the same article:
BPAS cites the average pregnancy success rate of a vasectomy reversal is around 55% if performed within 10 years, and drops to 25% if performed over 10 years.
95% successful at producing some viable sperm, but if its been >10 years only 25% effective at producing offspring.
And its most successful reversal rate is within 3 years, which, quite frankly, why bother with surgery you plan to reverse in 3 years?!
And ~that~ combined is what makes it impractical as effective male birth control. In an ideal world you get get one at 15 and then reliably reverse it at 25-30 when you want kids. But by that point you are well into 75% of it not working well enough to get anyone pregnant territory.
Its great once you are -done- having children, but if you plan to have children in the future... not so much.
Male sperm travel faster, it sounds credible to me that based on cycle the male sperm could have an advantage (less effective at waiting for an egg to drop perhaps, but if the egg is right there, they get in it first). 120 M to 100 F at fertilization I think.
The X/Y size difference is actively being exploited for IVF sex-selection; but apparently the accuracy is a bit tepid even with fancy flow cytometry techniques.I'd imagine that less carefully calibrated distance-based tests would show even weaker results(and not have the amusing side effect of making ethicists cry, which is a pity).
As with any male contraceptive, there's one big problem: guys lie.
"Sure, honey, I've got the gold thingies in my balls. Don't worry."
Not a problem. The law is completely stacked against men when it comes to conception. He would be guilty of rape, and be forced by the government to pay child support (even have his wages garnished to accomplish this), with no consideration at all towards his ability to pay.
Consider a woman that lies about conception. He has no parental say regarding abortion, and can still be forced by the government to pay child support. Legalized slavery, a blast from the past.
More Twoson than Cupertino