Testosterone Could Be Male Contraception

Researchers in China said they may have found a method for male contraception.

They said that injecting men with testosterone in tea seed oil for 30 months made it very unlikely that they would father children, but that the process was reversible and did not have serious side effects.

Researchers tested more than 1,000 healthy men ages 20 to 45 who had each fathered a child within two years.

The testing found a pregnancy rate of 1.1 per 100 men in two years of testing. Researchers said that no serious problems were reported and that reproductive function was normal after the test in all but two subjects.

"For couples who cannot or prefer not to use only female-oriented contraception, options have been limited to vasectomy, condom and withdrawal," said Dr. Yi-Qun Gu of the National Research Institute for Family Planning in Beijing. "Our study shows a male hormonal contraceptive regimen may be a potential, novel and workable alternative."

Gu cautioned that long-term tests would be needed to make sure the injections are really safe.

The study will be published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.