For over ten years I have been trying to help launch a much more effective, cheaper and better birth control based on a remote-controlled vasectomy plug.
Women have been burdened with many unfortunate side-effects in the search for birth control, from bleeding and infections from IUDs to the turmoil incidental to birth-control pills and their hormonal side-effects. Men have lagged in their efforts, and only recently -- possibly thanks to DNA testing for fatherhood -- have shown notable interests in stopping their unwanted fertility.
The male system is a lot easier to modify without side-effects, but the most cheap and effective method, the vasectomy, has some serious down-sides: its cheap and easy to do but costs thousands and delicate surgery for a 50% chance of reversing it to regain fertility. In addition to the real possibility of actually wanting to have more kids, there is the strong psychological aspect: many feel "less of a man" after having been "clipped".
With what I a calling the " eValve" there is an electronically controlled on/off switch that is permanently implanted in the Vas Deferens and that has 2 modes: "OFF" in which sperm can flow freely out, and "ON" in which a barrier has been raised that prevent any viable sperm from passing through. My ideal vision is something that would shred the sperm, but not block them, so the man's body has no feed-back from pent-up sperm that may cause negative side-affects. A design using interlocking platinum-steel wires might work, or a system like the petals of a flower that hug the contours of the plug in OFF mode, and close in to interlock and place a thin sharp mesh in the way when ON.
A man with an eValve would not feel like 'less of a man' but a new and improved man with remote-control access to fertility.
Instead of being a method mostly for much older men who felt zero need for future fertility; 16 year old guys could get an eValve installed before their first fling. Once in a happy set-up, and wanting kids, that guy could turn his eValve to OFF as long as desired, then turn if back ON when desired.
Naturally condoms will be valuable for STD prevention, but the eValve would still have significant role -- even as back-up.
In the poorer parts of the world the eValve could provide very cheap and fool-proof birth-control, for a fairly small one-time investment, and installed by a trained but non-medical person. The procedure could take less than three minutes and just leave a bit of soreness. Unlike the snip and tie of regular vasectomies there is much less trauma so therefore less reaction. Naturally, just as with regular vasectomies there will be a bit of time before zero sperm are still present.
I would love to get some help making this idea come to life, anybody from the DKos community wish to pitch in suggestions or help with contacts of people in the micro-medical field? Maybe even help form a team to promote this?
End of part 1