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The drugs, called DMAU and 11b-MNTDC, are part of a class of drugs called progestogenic androgens. These drugs suppress testosterone, which lowers sperm count. Lowering testosterone levels normally leads to unpleasant side effects, but most of the men in the study were willing to continue using the drugs, suggesting the side effects were acceptable.
“Male contraception options are currently restricted to vasectomy and condoms, and are thus extremely limited as compared to female options,” said lead researcher Tamar Jacobsohn of the Contraceptive Development Program at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. “Development of an effective, reversible male contraceptive method will improve reproductive options for men and women, have a major impact on public health by decreasing unintended pregnancy, and allow men to have an increasingly active role in family planning.”
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“Men’s positive experiences in clinical trials and high ratings of acceptability for this male pill should serve to excite the public about male birth control being potentially widely available in the coming decades,” Jacobsohn said.
(With inputs from ANI)