Sterilisation

Female sterilisation is a permanent and an effective form of contraception. Also known as tubal ligation, it is a fairly simple operation and involves cutting, sealing or blocking the fallopian tubes (the tubes which through eggs travel between the ovaries and the uterus). This stops pregnancy by preventing the eggs from reaching the sperm and becoming fertilised. Sterilisation is an operation performed under general anaesthetic and has a recovery period of a few days.

Female sterilisation is more than 99% effective. It can be reversed, but the success rate is much smaller, with only 50% to 80% of women's fertility returning, depending on age and what sterilisation methods were used.

It is very important you are 100% sure you no longer want children before you undergo a sterilization procedure. You may want to consider the other available options, for example; a vasectomy, which is the male form of sterilisation, and can be reversed. It is also a procedure that is much less invasive. Therefore this could be a better option if you and your partner are not completely sure you do not want any more children.