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Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the return to fertility following removal of the GyneFix® intrauterine implant system in women wishing to conceive. Study design: A retrospective study was performed on a sample of healthy, sexually active nulligravid/nulliparous and parous women. The participants were 18-41 years of age, with no apparent infertility problem, living in a stable relationship and planning to become pregnant. Women who changed their mind and did not wish to become pregnant immediately after intrauterine device (IUD) removal were excluded from the study. Women were evaluated in terms of rates of conception and fertility outcome. A total of 128 women were evaluated. Results: The study shows that 119 out of 128 (93%) past users of GyneFix have conceived, accounting for a net cumulative pregnancy rate of 88% at 12 months and 99% after 2 years' observation. No statistical differences in pregnancy rates were found for age and duration of use of the IUD. A strong significant difference in pregnancy rate was shown (p = 0.007) between parous and nulligravid/nulliparous women. Seventy-seven women (66.9%) gave birth to a term infant. There were no stillbirths. Twenty-five women (21.8%) are pregnant at the time of writing. Five (4.4%) spontaneous abortions occurred and in eight women (6.9%) the pregnancy was terminated. There were no ectopic pregnancies. Conclusion: The results obtained compare favorably with those obtained in previous studies conducted following the removal of copper IUDs. The use of the frameless IUD does not affect future fertility in nulligravid/nulliparous and parous women wishing to become pregnant following removal of the device. Nulliparous women conceive significantly earlier than parous women.