Appropriate use of the intrauterine device.

The intrauterine device, a common form of birth control in the early 1970s, is now avoided by American physicians and women because of concern about complications. This concern is largely the result of the problems reported with use of an intrauterine device that is no longer manufactured. More recent intrauterine devices have an improved design, and reevaluation has shown them to be a safe, efficacious and cost-effective form of birth control. Careful patient selection and preinsertion counseling are crucial to success with the device. Recent studies conclude that the intrauterine device poses no increased risk of pelvic inflammatory disease or infertility when used by appropriately selected patients.