100 000 quinacrine sterilizations

Abstract

100000 quinacrine nonsurgical female sterilizations have been completed over the past decade involving transcervical insertion of quinacrine (252 mg) as pellets by one, two or three monthly insertions. No deaths have been reported and serious complications are far fewer than for surgical sterilization. Side-effects are mild and transient. Efficacy has improved from 3 pregnancy failures per 100 women at one year to approximately 1 by improved insertion technique and use of adjuvants. Long-term follow-up of early cases in Chile shows no increased risk of cancer for this method. The main advantage of quinacrine sterilization is its ability to raise contraceptive prevalence and thereby reduce maternal mortality and morbidity, especially in rural and urban slum areas of developing countries. It should be made available as an option to well informed women everywhere as an economical and safe permanent family planning method.

Quinacrine sterilization for human immunodeficiency virus–positive women

“…Except for bleeding, the incidence of AEs is similar to that reported in previous studies (13,14,(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37), that is, they were mild and tolerable and frequently ceased spontaneously. Some of the less common side effects may be masked or enhanced by the disease or the antiretroviral therapy.…”

“…Antiretroviral therapy users and nonusers presented similar AEs after quinacrine sterilization. In regard to safety, AEs and the absence of serious AEs corroborate similar findings in studies involving >175,000 women (unknown HIV serologic findings) who had quinacrine sterilization (10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37). The serial measures of the viral load and CD4þ and CD8þ lymphocytes are important tools to monitor HIV-infected subjects.…”

“…Worldwide, the Center for Research of Population and Security has documented 100,000 women who have received quinacrine sterilization with no mortality and no complications serious enough to require surgery (35). Only two patients were hospitalized, and those were for an allergic reaction.…”

Mepacrine alleviates airway hyperresponsiveness and airway inflammation in a mouse model of asthma

“…Topical application of mepacrine is also well known for its nonsurgical female sterilization [14]. In 1950s, a few preliminary studies indicated its usage in asthma, however there were neither any mechanistic evidence for its anti-asthma property nor any further investigations [15,16].…”

Hysteroscopy and contraception

“…The need to make this procedure simple, safe, inexpensive and thereby more acceptable, even in countries with limited surgical facilities, is well recognised. Use of quinacrine pellets has become the most widely adopted method of non-surgical female sterilisation [25]. The FHI has recently decided not to pursue further research on quinacrine, partly because of the relatively high pregnancy rates after quinacrine compared to other contraceptive methods [26].…”