Studies have shown that with consistent treatment of androgenic steroids, men can have reduced sperm production within a few months and it can remain like that for as long as they continue steroid treatment. Cessation of steroid treatment often returns sperm production to normal within a few months.
There is still research going on to find better ways, though. For example, a combination treatment of testosterone and progestin has also been effective. This mixture was in the form on a testosterone implant and injections of progestin. Studies show that this is ninety-five percent effective in preliminary trials, but it’s not gone through the extensive testing needed to fully approve it yet. The plan for this treatment is for it to be an injection every 3-4 months and for the procedure and lowered sperm counts to be fully reversible.
This method isn’t completely ready to be on the market yet. Researchers say that the implant plus the injection is not the most convenient method so there still needs to be some work to develop a tablet or implant.
The benefits to having a reliable and reversible male contraceptive is that couples will have more choices when it comes to contraceptive where as it was usually left up to the female to take care of it unless they used methods that were less reliable or permanent. It’s also great for couple where the female has problems with typical hormonal contraceptives or is in a high-risk group for taking oral contraceptives. Sources: |
