Moving a contraceptive vaginal ring closer to market |
2003 ANNUAL REPORT
Moving a contraceptive vaginal ring closer to market
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| Women who tested the vaginal ring in Brazil, Chile, the Dominican Republic, and the United States liked and accepted the contraceptive. Large-scale safety and efficacy studies are about to begin. |
In 2003, scientists at the Population Council’s Center for Biomedical Research made significant progress on a new contraceptive vaginal ring. The ring is a sustained-release drug-delivery system made of flexible silicone rubber. It inhibits ovulation by continuously releasing a low dose of hormones—synthetic progestin and synthetic estrogen—into vaginal tissue and then the bloodstream. Results from initial studies indicate that the ring is as effective as oral contraceptives or intrauterine devices in preventing pregnancy.
Council scientists designed the ring to provide contraception for a full year, making it a particularly useful product for women in developing countries, whose birth planning options are often limited. Researchers manufactured a ring prototype in the mid-1990s and have been testing it for safety and efficacy in clinical trials. They now plan to proceed to a large-scale study that, if successful, could lead to submission to the United States Food and Drug Administration and other health authorities. If formally approved, the Council’s ring would be the only long-acting ring system available; Organon’s contraceptive ring, NuvaRing®, which recently gained FDA approval, works for only one month.
The Council’s contraceptive ring is intended to be worn for three weeks for each of 12 months and removed for a week, during which time a menstrual period is induced. It is inserted and removed by the user as in the case of a diaphragm and does not require attention before each act of sexual intercourse. Further, the ring does not produce certain side effects, such as acne, that are experienced with the androgenic progestins used in most oral contraceptives.
According to reproductive endocrinologist Régine Sitruk-Ware, the ring was well liked and accepted by women in all countries in which it was tested—Brazil, Chile, the Dominican Republic, and the United States. Women who used the ring, she reports, came back to the clinic to request it again.
Summing up the method’s appeal, Sitruk-Ware says, “The system works without daily attention, which favors better compliance and hence fewer failures. Other systems such as implants, injections, and IUDs have this advantage as well, but they require greater involvement of a health provider. Once she has it, the woman controls the ring herself.”
| Régine Sitruk-Ware is executive director of product research and development at the Council's Center for Biomedical Research. |  |
