There are some risks to getting an IUD, but they’re very small. Rare complications include malposition and perforation. Malposition is when the IUD has an abnormal position in the uterus. Perforation is when the IUD passes through the wall of the uterus. Your care provider will be careful during placement to avoid these complications, and in some cases, an ultrasound may be used to confirm the IUD’s position.
Many concerns about the safety of IUDs date back to the 1970s. At the time, an IUD called the Dalkon Shield was shown to be ineffective at preventing pregnancy and also caused very serious pelvic infections. But the Dalkon Shield had major design flaws that modern IUDs do not have.