What is the chance of getting pregnant with an IUD?

If you don't want children, you need to take contraceptive measures when having sex. The most common method of contraception is to use condoms, which are troublesome and consume a lot of materials because they need to be used every time. In this case, some people will consider wearing an IUD, but the chances of preventing pregnancy are uncertain. So, what are the chances of getting pregnant with an IUD? Let’s take a look below.

The intrauterine device (commonly known as the IUD) mainly achieves the contraceptive effect by changing the natural environment in the uterine cavity, affecting the development and implantation of the fertilized egg, etc. It is widely accepted by women because of its safety, effectiveness, simplicity, economy and reversibility. Currently, copper-containing intrauterine devices are mainly used in clinical practice. In recent years, some new types of drug-release intrauterine contraceptive devices have emerged that can release low doses of drugs locally in the uterine cavity. In addition to contraception, they can also treat certain gynecological diseases.

Although IUD is a simple and safe contraceptive method, it also has some adverse reactions and complications. If the IUD is improperly placed, or does not match the size and shape of the uterine cavity, it may cause the IUD to fall off or move downward. The downward movement of the IUD will affect the contraceptive effect and cause pregnancy with the device. It can be seen that it is still possible for women of childbearing age to become pregnant after having an IUD inserted. If pregnancy is confirmed, it is not advisable to continue the pregnancy considering the effect of the intrauterine device on the embryo. In addition, the intrauterine device is a contraindication for medical abortion, so an artificial abortion should be performed as soon as possible to terminate the pregnancy.

A small number of people do get pregnant with an IUD inserted. The reason may be that the ring size is too small or the ring position has dropped so that it cannot hinder the development of the fertilized egg. In the past, it was believed that although the contraceptive ring and the fetus were in the same uterine cavity, the fetus was wrapped by the fetal membrane and protected by amniotic fluid inside the fetal membrane. The contraceptive ring was not in direct contact with the fetus outside the fetal membrane and would not affect the development of the fetus. The pregnancy could be carried to full term with the ring, and the contraceptive ring would be expelled along with the placenta during delivery.

However, a large number of observations at home and abroad over the years have shown that the incidence of complications such as miscarriage, premature birth, early placental abruption, infection and bleeding is relatively high after pregnancy with an IUD. There are also individual reports of the IUD entering the fetal membrane and growing onto the fetal body, or of the IUD being wrapped around the fetus' neck, causing intrauterine fetal death. Therefore, it is now advocated that if a woman becomes pregnant with an IUD, she should have an artificial abortion as soon as possible.