Home Family Practice Copper Intrauterine Devices Tied to Lower Risk for Cervical Cancer

Copper Intrauterine Devices Tied to Lower Risk for Cervical Cancer

Findings based on comparison to hormonal intrauterine devices

WEDNESDAY, March 18, 2020 (HealthDay News) — Use of copper intrauterine devices (Cu IUDs) is associated with a lower risk for cervical cancer versus use of the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS), according to a study published in the February issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

Matthew E. Spotnitz, M.D., from the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City, and colleagues retrospectively analyzed data from 10,674 patients who received IUDs at the medical center. The relative risk for high-grade cervical neoplasms was assessed among propensity-matched Cu IUD (8,274 patients) and LNG-IUS (2,400 patients) users.

The researchers identified 114 cervical neoplasm outcomes, with 77 in the Cu IUD cohort and 37 in the LNG-IUS cohort. In the Cu IUD cohort, the diagnosis of high-grade cervical neoplasia was 0.7 percent versus 1.8 percent in the LNG-IUS cohort (2.4 cases/1,000 person-years and 5.2 cases/1,000 person-years, respectively). Compared with LNG-IUS users, the relative risk for high-grade cervical neoplasms among Cu IUD users was 0.38.

“Our findings may help patients and health care providers make informed decisions about whether the benefits of hormonal IUD use, compared to copper IUD use, are greater than the risks,” Spotnitz said in a statement.

Two authors disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

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