What are the benefits?

What are the benefits?

• Opportunity for women to share the responsibility for the condoms with their partners
• A woman may be able to use the female condom if her partner refuses to use the male condom
• The female condom will protect against most STDs and pregnancy if used correctly
• The FC or FC2 female condom can be inserted up to 8 hours before intercourse so as not to interfere with the moment
• The FC and FC2 female condoms are made of polyurethane and nitrile, which are less likely to cause an allergic reaction than latex. These materials can be used with oil-based as well as water-based lubricants. No special storage requirements are needed because polyurethane and nitrile are not affected by changes in temperature and dampness. In addition, these materials are thin and conduct heat well, so sensation is preserved.

What are the disadvantages?

• The outer ring or frame is visible outside the vagina, which can make some women feel self-conscious
• The FC and FC2 female condoms can make noises during intercourse (adding more lubricant can lessen this problem)
• Some women find the female condom hard to insert and to remove
• It has a higher failure rate in preventing pregnancy than non-barrier methods such as the pill
• It is relatively expensive and relatively limited in availability in some countries
• It is recommended that the female condom be used only once

Can I reuse the female condom?

It is believed that limited availability and high cost have led some women to reuse female condoms in some countries. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends use of a new male or female condom for every act of intercourse for those people who use condoms for pregnancy prevention and/or STD/HIV prevention.

WHO does not recommend or promote reuse of female condoms but has released a document together with guidelines and advice for programme managers who may consider reuse of FC female condoms in local settings.² There are no guidelines for reusing VA and FC2 female condoms.

Using the female condom for anal sex

Some people use the female condom for anal sex, although it has not been officially approved or recommended for this use. More research is needed to determine whether the female condom is effective at preventing STD and HIV transmission during anal sex.

Support for the female condom

WHO and UNAIDS are encouraging wider access to the female condom as a method of preventing both pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. Many governments and non-governmental organisations provide female condoms for free or at subsidised prices as part of their HIV prevention and family planning programmes.

Worldwide use and availability

The female condom is used in public health programmes in more than 90 countries and is commercially marketed directly to consumers in ten countries.³ It is quite widely used in some places where it is actively promoted, such as South Africa, Zimbabwe and Brazil. However in many parts of the world it is hardly available at all.

In fiscal year 2008, the makers of the FC female condom sold 34.7 million units worldwide, up from 25.9 million in 2006 and 14 million in 2005.⁴ Many of these condoms were purchased by donor agencies such as USAID and UNFPA. The VA currently sells in much smaller quantities. Altogether, female condoms account for only around 0.2% of global condom use.

In 2005, nearly two thirds of all female condoms were used in Africa, while the next largest shares went to North America and Europe. Asia accounted for less than 1% of the global total in 2005, though figures for later years may be higher due to growth in India.⁵