Word parts
What it means
Any way of preventing pregnancy, also called birth control. Methods include hormonal ones (pills, patches, the vaginal ring, injections and implants), intrauterine devices (IUDs), barrier methods (condoms and diaphragms), fertility awareness, and permanent sterilizationstair-uh-luh-ZAY-shunA process that destroys all microorganisms, including spores, on an item; also a permanent birth control procedure.Full entry . Condoms are the only method that also lowers the risk of sexually transmitted infectionSEK-shoo-uh-lee trans-MIT-id in-FEK-shunAn infection passed from one person to another mainly through sexual contact.Full entry . Emergency contraception can be used after unprotected sex.
For the nurse
Help the client choose a method that fits their health, goals and lifestyle, and teach how to use it correctly. Estrogen-containing methods raise the risk of blood clots, especially in people who smoke and are over 35.
At a glance
| Spanish | anticoncepción |
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Related terms
estrogen
A female sex hormone, made mainly by the ovaries, and the group of drugs that act like it.
sterilization
A process that destroys all microorganisms, including spores, on an item; also a permanent birth control procedure.
contraceptive
A drug or device used to prevent pregnancy.
pregnancy
The time during which an embryo, then a fetus, develops inside the uterus, from conception to birth.