German Sperm Contraseption Switch?

BIMEK SLV

German carpenter invents contraception switch that turns off flow of sperm - A German carpenter says his invention will switch men to a new contraception alternative.

Clemens Bimek says he discovered how to insert a valve that can allow men to turn the flow of sperm on and off — all by flipping a switch located under the skin of the scrotum, according to German magazine Spiegel.

"Many of the doctors I consulted didn't take me seriously," Bimek said.

"But there were some who encouraged me to go on tinkering and helped me with their expertise."

So far Bimek is the only man who has the tiny implant — which is less than one inch long and weighs less than one-tenth of an ounce — installed on his vas deferens.

Hartwig Bauer, the urologist who carried out the operation said the implant was preferable to a vasectomy.

"A third of patients want to have the operation reversed later, but it doesn't always work," he said.

But the spokesman for the Professional Association of German Urologists, Wolgang Bühmann doesn't agree.

"My assessment is that implanting the valve could cause scarring where it meets the vas deferens," he said.

He said the scarring could prevent the flow of sperm even when the valve is open and that the valve could become clogged over time if left in the closed position.

However, Anneke Loos — the head of a medical product testing center in Hannover — said that other implants made of the material used by Bimek are well tolerated elsewhere in the body.

"The question is whether it will cause problems when it is implanted in this area," she said.

The valve is to be implanted in 25 men in trials starting this year.