[Contraception and tubal sterility of infective origin]

A series of 89 caucasian women, who had been operated on for non-infectious tubal infertility were studied to find out what contraceptive methods they had used before they became infertile (oral contraception, intra-uterine contraceptive device and other methods). A matched series of 178 fertile women were used as a control group. The numbers who had chlamydia were studied as a function of the method of contraception in the group of infertile women. This work shows that women with tubal infertility due originally to infection had less often used oral contraception than the matched group of fertile women had. One can conclude that oral contraception acts as a prevention against this cause of infertility. The role played by intra-uterine contraceptive devices is difficult to establish. All the same, there is a significant relationship between the use of intra-uterine devices and tubal infertility of infectious origin, whether we look at multiparae or women between 25 and 34 years of age. This study also shows that chlamydia is not associated with the use of combined preparation oral contraceptives, nor with the use of the intra-uterine device in women who have tubal factor infertility. This study all the same shows that it does seem to be important to advise oral contraception in preference to the intra-uterine device in women who are still wanting to have a pregnancy, even if they are multiparae or multigravidae.