Jadelle – 2 rods, 5 years of contraception

IT’S pretty amazing how much power these two little flexible contraceptive rods that resemble matchsticks punch.

Jadelle is an implant that is inserted under the skin of the inner side of the upper arm. Each rod has 75 grams of the progestin levonorgestrel that is slowly released into the woman’s body. With its high success rate for reliability, 999 out of every 1,000 women and girls can count on Jadelle for contraceptive protection for at least five years. When they decide to have it removed there is an almost immediate return of their fertility, unlike the injectable Depo-Provera that sees a return to fertility after one to one and a half years.

Jadelle is free and available locally in most of the island’s major hospitals, for example Spanish Town, Annotto Bay, May Pen, Cornwall Regional, Mandeville, Victoria Jubilee, and in some public sector health centres (Portland, St Ann’s Bay, St Thomas). It joins the copper-bearing intrauterine contraceptive device as a long-acting, reversible hormonal contraceptive that guarantees immediate return of one’s fertility.

Ideally the method can be administered if the woman has been seeing her period for the last seven days. However, it is not the best method for the woman who is pregnant, has a history of blood clots, is overweight or obese, or who is currently being treated for breast cancer, liver disease or liver tumours, intracranial hypertension, or who has unexplained bleeding. Users of antiretroviral medications should consult, and be counselled by their physician to ensure that their medications don’t work against the action of the implants.

Both insertion and removal of the rods, that take 10 and 15 minutes, respectively are done under sterile conditions for which the skills of a trained physician are needed. Removal can be done at any time in the five years. Based on the area on the arm where the rods are placed, they are not obvious and privacy is afforded to the user.

The five-year interval permits women to grasp opportunities for educational attainment and advancement, seek and secure employment, settle into solid relationships, and look after other young children who they may already have in their households. For the woman who is undecided about whether she and her partner will want another child in years to come, her acceptance of Jadelle provides the additional time she needs to make up her mind. Likewise, the older woman who has not chosen to adopt the more permanent method of contraception – tubal ligation or ‘tie-off’ – should speak with her health care provider about the implant.

Ranked as one of the most effective methods, Jadelle, as with any other hormonal method, has side effects. Perhaps the most common side effects are spotting, slight weight gain, and moderate bleeding. Simple strategies can help a woman cope with these side effects. Follow-up sessions with the doctor up to six weeks later can address any bleeding issues which, if they cannot be resolved, a discussion is held on other contraceptive options. To deal with the weight gain doctors recommend that the woman watches what she eats and includes exercise in her daily routine.

Other more uncommon reactions to the method include inflammation at the insertion site, which the health care provider will treat with anti-inflammatory drugs and pain killers; or the woman may get an infection for which antibiotics are used.

Conversely, there are the benefits of a reduced chance of pelvic inflammatory disease, and of having a pregnancy that develops outside of the womb (ectopic pregnancy). Truth be told, this discreet contraceptive is a recommended and excellent choice if you haven’t yet made up your mind about permanent contraception. If women truly desire a window of five years or more in their sexual and reproductive lives to put on hold childbearing, then seriously look at the contraceptive option Jadelle. The point should be made that Jadelle does not protect against sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV. For protection from STIs/HIV/AIDS, a condom should be used every time a couple has sexual intercourse. When the condom is used alongside the Jadelle implant – dual-method use — the partners benefit from dual protection.