Does anyone know anything about using quinacrine for female sterilization?

April 6, 2009 9:56 AM

Does anyone know anything about using quinacrine for female sterilization?

I'm ready to get sterilized and do not want to have a tubal ligation. My options are quinacrine (which I'd never heard of before today) and Essure (though it's likely that I might be allergic to the nickel if rashes from earrings are any indication). I'm pretty scared and would like to hear anything anybody knows about using quinacrine for female sterilization. I came across research articles online that I don't know how to interpret (a cluster of cancer cases in Chile among quinacrine sterilized women). I called the clinic and the nurse said it was very safe, but if this is true, wouldn't everybody use it instead of tubal ligations?

Thank you in advance.

posted by anonymous to Health & Fitness (3 answers total)

IANAD, but my understanding is that the FDA has not approved quinacrine for sterilization, so this would be off-label use of the drug (if you're in the United States; I don't know about its status in other countries). Personally, this would give me pause, and I would want to speak directly with the doctor and hear about what research -- not just their own patients' experiences -- they're backing up their claims of safety with before considering it as an option.
posted by keever at 11:10 AM on April 6, 2009

Talk to a doctor. This is a serious issue and you shouldn't be using the internet for info on this topic. Talk to a doctor you trust.
posted by brenton at 1:51 PM on April 6, 2009

This google scholar search had some interesting reading.

Wikipedia:

A supplemental issue on quinacrine sterilization (QS) was published in 2003 in the International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics reporting on 42,252 cases. In over 30 years of research on QS, not a single death has been reported,[10] compared to reported United States fatality rates for surgical sterilization of 2 per 100,000 and 10 per 100,000 in the United Kingdom.[11]

reference:
11. Sokal, D.C., Kessel. E., Zipper. J., and King. T. (1994). "Quinacrine: Clinical experience". A background paper for the WHO consultation on the development of new technologies for female sterilization..
posted by zentrification at 2:08 PM on April 6, 2009