[Reliability of the vaginal diaphragm as a contraceptive method]

With a failure rate of between 2 and 4 in recent statistics, the vaginal diaphragm can be considered a relatively reliable method of contraception. The physician can therefore recommend this method as an alternative if, e.g., ovulation inhibitors are contraindicated and the patient rejects an intrauterine pessary. In such cases diaphragms are as acceptable as condoms, the more so because the two methods are completely harmless. (Table 9 summarizes the advantages and disadvantages of diaphragms.) Whether, in the final analysis, the condom or the diaphragm is accepted, will largely depend on whether the man or the woman assumes the responsibility for family planning. The physician can use his influence when explaining the contraceptive principle of the diaphragm and showing the patient how to use it to keep the failure rate to a minimum. The present authors consider that even today, good, objective counseling on reliable family planning is one of the physician's most important tasks in the sphere of preventive medicine.