Male Contraception "As Effective" As The Female Pill

A male contraceptive injection has been found to be 96 per cent effective at preventing unplanned pregnancies.

The news have been met with a warm welcome, given that it could pave the way for men and women to share equal responsibility for birth control.

In the study, 350 men were given injections of hormones shown to dramatically lower their sperm count by "switching off" the male reproductive system, according to The Guardian.

Speaking to Richard Anderson, a professor of clinical reproductive science and author of the study, he said: "If you're comparing it to other reversible male methods, it's far better than the condom and it puts it in the same ballpark as the pill."

"The drugs caused some unpleasant side-effects, however, meaning that the trial had to be halted early," reads the report.

What were the side-effects? There were a few, including: depression, acne and increased libido were a few main ones. They actually caused about 20 men to drop out of the study early, which led to the trial stopping earlier than planned.

There are some overlapping side-effects with female contraception. A study earlier in the year revealed the contraceptive pill doubles the risk of depression for women, particularly adolescent girls.

Fascinating. A lot of contraception available to women has some or all of these side effects and is already on... https://t.co/lqfhFXqXeO

— Deirdre OShaughnessy (@deshocks) October 28, 2016

The trial involved injections of two hormones, which they received every two months. Only four pregnancies occurred among partners of the 274 men, which indicates that the jabs have a similar level of efficacy to the female combined pill. It's also significantly better than condoms, which are only about 82 per cent effective.

Scientists stopped enrolling new participants into the study in 2011 due to the reported side-effects. However, at the end of the trial, three-quarters of the men said they'd be willing to continue using the contraceptive jab.

I find it amusing that the common complaints about female contraception halted a study of a male option. Come on, dudes... https://t.co/QZFyG0y39k

— Daniel Bremmer (@danieldantastic) October 27, 2016

Chris Barratt, professor of reproductive medicine at the University of Dundee has applauded the research. "There has been no progress in male contraceptives for 40 plus years," he said.

"[The] fact that the study reports relatively low side-effects and good ease of use are real-world developments."

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