Compared with other contraceptive methods such as sterilization and oral contraceptives, the prevalence of IUD use in Latin American countries is relatively low. This study evaluated the clinical performance of the TCu 380A IUD in six Latin American clinics to determine whether its performance was a determining factor in its low prevalence, and to provide efficacy and safety data based on local data sets to Latin American service providers. The 12-month unintended pregnancy rate ranged from 0.0 to 1.7 per 100 women and the 12-month discontinuation rates for all reasons, from 3.3 to 21.0 per 100 women. Statistically significant differences in discontinuation rates were observed among clinics, and could be explained, in part, by the different sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of women attending the clinics. The overall performance and acceptability of the TCu 380A IUD was considered satisfactory and comparable to those reported from other countries. Thus, the low prevalence of IUD use in Latin America is probably related to barriers to its use rather than its clinical performance.
PIP: Although the IUD is one of the most widely used contraceptive methods in the world, only 4.1% of reproductive aged married women in Latin America currently use it. Chile, Colombia, and Ecuador are among the few countries in the region where more than 10% of such women report its use. The authors report their findings from a clinical evaluation of the performance of the TCu 380A IUD at six clinic sites in Chile, Mexico, El Salvador, Peru, and Venezuela. Data were analyzed for two sites in Mexico. The study investigated whether the performance of the IUD was a determining factor in its low prevalence and provided efficacy and safety data based upon local data sets to Latin American service providers. The twelve-month unintended pregnancy rate among the 854 subjects ranged from 0.0-1.7 per 100 women, while the twelve-month discontinuation rates for all reasons ranged 3.3-21.0 per 100 women. The statistically significant differences in discontinuation rates observed among clinics may be partly explained by the different sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of women attending the clinics. Overall, the performance and acceptability of the TCu 380A IUD were found to be satisfactory and comparable to those reported from other countries. The low prevalence of IUD use in Latin America is therefore probably related to barriers to its use instead of to its clinical performance.