The makers of a contraceptive that can be turned on and off at the push of a button hope the device will be available to the public by 2018.
The pregnancy-preventing microchip is implanted under a woman's skin and can be used every day for up to 16 years — that's longer than copper IUDs, which can last up to 10 years, and hormonal IUDs, which usually last five. The device delivers 30 micrograms of levonorgestrel, a synthetic hormone, daily and has a remote control so it can be turned on and off. "That provides a certain convenience factor for those who are planning their family," Dr. Robert Farra of MIT told the BBC.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Unprepared for a pandemicOpinion What happens if bird flu evolves to spread among humans?
-
6 impressive homes in TorontoFeature Featuring floating stairs in Lytton Park and a two-tiered infinity pool in Banbury-Don Mills
-
Samantha Harvey's 6 favorite books that redefine how we see the worldFeature The Booker Prize-winning author recommends works by Marilynne Robinson, George Eliot, and more
-
California declares bird flu emergencySpeed Read The emergency came hours after the nation's first person with severe bird flu infection was hospitalized
-
Bird flu one mutuation from human threat, study findsSpeed Read A Scripps Research Institute study found one genetic tweak of the virus could enable its spread among people
-
Dark chocolate tied to lower diabetes riskSpeed Read The findings were based on the diets of about 192,000 US adults over 34 years
-
ACA opens 2025 enrollment, enters 2024 raceSpeed Read Mike Johnson promises big changes to the Affordable Care Act if Trump wins the election
-
McDonald's sued over E. coli linked to burgerSpeed Read The outbreak has sickened at least 49 people in 10 states and left one dead
-
Texas dairy worker gets bird flu from infected cowSpeed Read The virus has been spreading among cattle in Texas, Kansas, Michigan and New Mexico
-
Dengue hits the Americas hard and earlySpeed Read Puerto Rico has declared an epidemic as dengue cases surge
-
US bans final type of asbestosSpeed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
