PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – More doctors are offering the Essure procedure as an affordable method of permanent birth control.
Sandra Diaz believes her family is perfect the way it is. She and her husband are happy with their 13-year-old and 13-month-old daughters, leading her to find a permanent method of birth control.
Dr. Victoria Garcia suggested the Essure procedure.
"The idea is to provide a seal with the coils and with the scarring so that the egg and the sperm don't meet," said Garcia.
Using a tiny camera, soft, flexible coils are inserted into the openings of the fallopian tubes. Patients are given a local anesthesia and sedatives during the procedure. The coils act as an egg blocker.
"It's very easy, like having a pap smear," said Diaz. "She went in and inserted the coils and I had mild cramping but very tolerable."
The Essure procedures doesn't require incisions and patients recover quickly.
Three months after the procedure, a confirmation test using a special dye confirmed the fallopian tubes were completely blocked.
"The eggs can't travel down the fallopian tubes, so the egg and the sperm can't do the tango, so no more babies," said Garcia.
Diaz said the procedure was the best one for her.
"There's no down time. I can get back to work, go back to my schedule with my kids," she said. "I absolutely love it."
More than 500,000 women have undergone the Essure procedure, which is covered by most insurance companies.