Tube-tying surgeries and vasectomies skyrocketed post-Roe

The number of young people undergoing sterilization procedures has "abruptly increased" following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June 2022, a new study shows.

The research, published Friday (April 12) in the journal JAMA Health Forum, assessed the impact of the ruling on the reproductive choices of young Americans, between ages 18 and 30. The 2022 court case, known as Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, eliminated the constitutional right to abortion, instead allowing states to regulate the medical procedure. As of early April 2024, abortion has been banned in 14 states, with a further 11 implementing gestational limits on the procedure, according to KFF. 

In the new study, scientists analyzed data from medical records to look for changes in the rate of tubal ligations — so-called tube-tying procedures — and vasectomies performed before and after Dobbs. They compared the time window of January 2019 to May 2022 with the months immediately following Dobbs, from June 2022 to September 2023. 

Tubal ligations and vasectomies are surgical procedures intended to permanently prevent pregnancy. Tubal ligation involves blocking or cutting the fallopian tubes — the passageways along which eggs are released from the ovaries into the uterus during the menstrual cycle. A vasectomy, meanwhile, involves surgeons cutting and sealing the tubes that supply semen with sperm from the testicles. 

Related: TeleHealth abortions are as safe and effective as in-person, large study shows

Both procedures can theoretically be reversed, but this is not always possible, so doctors advise patients to think of the surgeries as permanent contraception.

In the wake of Dobbs, the researchers found that an extra 58 women got tubal ligations in the U.S. per 100,000 outpatient visits. That's about an additional five procedures a month. Around 27 more men had a vasectomy per 100,000 outpatient visits during this time period; however, month to month, this didn't amount to a statistically signicant increase.