Recovery of fertility after use of the Levonorgestrel 20 mcg/d or copper T 380 Ag intrauterine device

Following use of either the Levonorgestrel 20 mcg/day or the TCu 380 Ag IUD in a randomized comparative study, 110 women stopped contracepting to have planned pregnancies. Pregnancy rates and recovery of fertility have been assessed. Age at acceptance, duration of use, parity and intervals between last pregnancy and IUD insertion or removal were similar for both groups. Life table pregnancy rates at one year were higher than 90 per cent for both device groups; but because some women quickly changed their minds or had been at risk of pregnancy only a short time before the analysis date, only 60.9 percent had actually become pregnant. Median time to planned pregnancy was 3 months for the TCu 380 Ag group and 4 months for the Levonorgestrel 20 group. Neither duration of use nor age at insertion or age at termination affected the pregnancy rates significantly.