A doctor or health care provider performs Mirena intrauterine device (IUD) removal in a medical office. Most insurance plans cover Mirena IUD removal. And the procedure should only take a few minutes.

There are several reasons why a doctor will remove Mirena. Usually, the doctor will replace an old IUD so it remains effective. Another reason is because a woman wishes to have a baby.

If a woman does not want to have a baby, she should have Mirena removed within seven days of the start of her period. If a woman removes the IUD within eleven days of having sex during any other time of the month, pregnancy may happen.

Sometimes, removal might be more complicated if there have been side effects with Mirena. These include serious side effects such as perforation of the uterus, pregnancy outside the uterus (ectopic pregnancy) or infection.

Complications can occur during insertion, while Mirena is in the uterus and during removal. Women who have suffered complications such as uterine perforation or ectopic pregnancy have filed Mirena lawsuits against Bayer.

Usually, doctors remove Mirena to replace it or because women want to become pregnant. But, some women’s health conditions or Mirena side effects may require removing the IUD.

IUD removal only takes a few minutes. The doctor will simply pull on the strings with forceps. The arms of the IUD will fold, and it will simply slide out.

Sometimes, the strings are missing. The doctor should rule out pregnancy and then use a sonogram or X-ray to locate the Mirena and then remove it with narrow forceps. He or she may need to dilate the cervical canal.

In some cases, doctors may need to surgically remove the IUD. This can happen if the Mirena perforated the uterus or moved from the uterus.

In the case of infections, doctors may have to treat the infection with antibiotics before removing the device.

Uterine perforation is more likely to occur during Mirena insertion rather than removal.

Mirena removal pain is usually minor. It should only last a few moments. Women should expect cramping as the device comes out.

After a routine Mirena removal, there should be no symptoms or pain. Some light spotting can occur. If women experience severe pain, fevers or excessive bleeding after removal, they should contact their doctor.

It may take a few months for a woman’s period to be regular again. A woman’s period should return to the way it was before Mirena implantation.

Most women’s fertility will go back to normal after Mirena removal, and they can get pregnant quickly. If a woman does not want to get pregnant after having an IUD removed, she should use another form of birth control.

While most women do not experience issues after Mirena removal, some side effects may occur.

For example, if a woman gets pregnant while on Mirena, removing the IUD may result in pregnancy loss.

Some women refer to the Mirena removal side effects as the “Mirena crash,” according to an article in Refinery29. But, there are no scientific studies about the crash.

Bayer and most doctors do not recommend removing Mirena at home because of possible complications.

Some doctors feel educating women on how to remove the device themselves might encourage more women to use it.

For instance, a study in the journal Contraception found 25 percent of women questioned would be more willing to try an IUD if they could remove it themselves.

However, another study by Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health found only one out of five women who tried self-removal did so successfully.