WASHINGTON: A U.S. start-up has come up with a new implantable contraceptive - a wireless, remote-controlled chip that can be turned on and off at the push of a button - which can last for 16 years.

The new birth control drug delivery system developed by Massachusetts-based MicroCHIPS can be remotely turned on or off. The device will begin pre-clinical testing in 2015 and if successful, it will be on the market by 2018.

According to MIT Technology Review, the device would be more convenient for many women because, unlike existing contraceptive implants, it can be deactivated without a trip to the clinic and an outpatient procedure, and it would last nearly half their reproductive life. The device measures 20 x 20 x 7 millimetres, and it is designed to be implanted under the skin of the buttocks, upper arm, or abdomen. It works by dispensing 30 micro-grammes a day of levonorgestrel, a hormone already used in several kinds of contraceptives.