Fact Sheet Female Condoms

							                                                                        Fact Sheet
                                                                Female Condoms

FEMALE CONDOM PRODUCT ATTRIBUTES                     THE FEMALE CONDOM HAS HIGH RATES OF
                                                     ACCEPTABILITY
•    Female condoms are the only available
     HIV prevention product designed for             •   Research conducted in more than 40 countries
     women to initiate.                                  demonstrates acceptability among women and men of
                                                         various ages, socio-economic status, sexual orientation
•    The available products are made from soft
                                                         and geographic location, with rates as high as 96%.5
     plastic, synthetic or natural rubber or latex
     and are held in place by a plastic ring or      •   Studies have shown that female condoms are often
     sponge.                                             used when one or both partners refuse to use a male
                                                         condom.6
•    The FC1 and FC2 are currently the only
     FDA approved female condoms. The FC1            •   Some women and men find sexual pleasure with the
     is made from polyurethane and the FC2 is            female condom superior to that of the male condom.7
     made from a synthetic rubber called nitrile.
     Both condoms can be used with oil-and           ACCESS TO FEMALE CONDOMS INCREASES THE
     water-based lubricants and by individuals       NUMBER OF PROTECTED SEX ACTS
     with latex allergies.                           •   Studies from Madagascar, Kenya, India and Brazil
                                                         have demonstrated that female condom promotion and
THE FEMALE CONDOM IS A HIGHLY
EFFECTIVE HIV AND PREGNANCY
                                                         use increases the total number of protected sex acts,
PREVENTION METHOD                                        reducing rates of STIs and the risk of HIV infection.8

•    Studies have shown that the female              •   Female condoms provide an additional protection
     condom is at least as effective as the male         option for anal intercourse, the sexual behavior with
     condom in reducing the risk of contracting          the highest probability of HIV transmission.
     sexually transmitted infections1 and can
                                                     FEMALE CONDOMS REMAIN LARGELY INACCESSIBLE
     reduce the per-act probability of HIV
     transmission by 97%.2                           •   In 2007 almost 26 million female condoms were
                                                         distributed worldwide compared to 11 billion male
•    As commonly used, female condoms will
                                                         condoms.9
     prevent pregnancy in 79 of 100 women
     using the product in the first year.3           •   Female condoms account for only 0.2% of the world’s
     Correct and consistent use results in               total condom supply.10
     prevention of 95 out of 100 pregnancies in      •   The U.S. government has shipped female condoms to
     the first year. Common use of male                  30 countries since 1998 and to 16 countries in 2007.
     condoms will prevent 85 out of 100                  Only five PEPFAR focus countries have ever received
     pregnancies in the first year and 98 out of         U.S. procured female condoms.11
     100 pregnancies if used correctly and
     consistently.4                                  •   Female condoms make up only 1.6% of total U.S.
                                                         international condom shipments.12


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REFERENCES

1
  UNFPA and PATH. 2006. Female Condom: A Powerful Tool for Protection. New York: United Nations Population
  Fund.
2
  Trusell, J, K. Sturgen, J. Strickler and R. Dominik. 1994. Comparative Contraceptive Efficacy of the Female Condom
  and Other Barrier Methods. Family Planning Perspectives 26: 66-72 as cited in Ebin, V. S. et al. 2006. In our Own
  Hands: SWAA-Ghana Champions the Female Condom. Quality/Caldida/Quatlie (17). New York: Population Council,
  Inc.
3
  Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHBSPH), U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
  and World Health Organization (WHO). 2007. Family Planning: A Global Handbook for Providers. Baltimore, MD.:
  INFO Project.
4
  Ibid fn. 4
5
  UNDP/UNFPA/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research on Human Reproduction. The Female Condom: A
  Review. Geneva: World Health Organization, 1997; Cecil H, Perry MH, Seal DW, et al. The female condom: what we
  have learned thus far. AIDS and Behavior 1998:2(3):241-56.
6
  Agha, S. 2001. Intention to Use the Female Condom Following a Mass-Marketing Campaign in Lusaka, Zambia.
  American Journal of Public Health 91(2): 307-310.
7
  Dias, P., K. Souto and K. Page-Shafer. 2006. Long Term Female Condom Use among Vulnerable Populations in Brazil.
  AIDS and Behavior 10 (1): 71.
8
  Center for Health and Gender Equity. 2008. Saving Lives Now: Female Condoms and the Role of U.S. Foreign Aid.
  Takoma Park, MD: Center for Health and Gender Equity.
9
  Ibid fn. 8
10
   Ibid fn. 8
11
   NEWVERN. 2008. NEWVERN is the information system for the Central Contraceptive Procurement (CCP) team of
   the GH/PRH/CSL Division of USAID. Arlington, VA: John Snow, Inc.
12
   Ibid fn. 11