The possible risks of a copper and an inert intrauterine device situated in the abdominal cavity: an experimental study in pigs and dogs.

The possible injurious effects of abdominal intrauterine devices (IUDs), including Cu-IUDs, inert IUDs, and "closed' IUDs, were evaluated in an experimental study. Pigs and dogs were used as they have, respectively, a propensity to form adhesions and a pronounced tendency to develop serious peritonitis. The reactions expected in humans might be intermediate to those found in these two kinds of experimental animals. The results of this study indicate that an inert or copper-bearing IUD usually remains in its initial position in the abdominal cavity, encapsulated by adhesions. The risk of strangulation of the intestine by a "closed' IUD seems minimal.