ACOG practice bulletin. Clinical management guidelines for obstetrician-gynecologists. Number 46, September 2003. (Replaces technical bulletin number 222, April 1996).

Bilateral tubal sterilization and vasectomy are both safe and effective permanent methods of contraception; more than 220 million couples worldwide use them as their contraceptive method of choice. Sterilization continues to be the most commonly used contraceptive method in the United States, with 11 million U.S. women relying on the method. Approximately 700,000 tubal sterilizations and 5000,000 vasectomies are performed in the United States annually. The purpose of this document is to review the evidence for the safety and effectiveness of sterilization in comparison with other forms of contraception, as well as evidence of the likelihood that a woman will regret having had a sterilization procedure.