Should you advise patients to remove an IUD before the expiry date on the box?
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1. Counselling Conundrum: a real question from a patient
2. Concise Conclusion: a straight-forward patient-friendly answer
3. Quick Wrap-up
Clearly, there are nuances that may not be captured in this format. The goal here is to provide you with helpful counselling tips which often draw from multiple sources or those which are not commonly accessed by busy healthcare providers serving the community.
Counselling Conundrum: "My Doctor told me my IUD will last 5 years, but the one you gave me says it expires next year. Can you give me one that expires in 5 years instead?"
Concise Conclusion: The expiry on the box is basically the date before which it should be inserted. As long as it's inserted before the date on the box, it will last the full 5-8 years (depending on indication and what dose of hormone is required).
Quick Wrap-up: This might seem silly, but we had never encountered this question, until one day we did. We aren't at all surprised a patient would think the expiry date should be the day you throw it out, rather than the last day you can use it.
Dive Deeper
1) Product Monograph (Mirena)
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