On 2016 Nov 24, Maruti Singh commented:

Thanks for your interest. Actually Caustic soda is a common household powder meant for washing clothes especially white. It is very cheap and usually easily available in villages of India. It is not used for birth control. The reason it was used here was to control the PPH following delivery- which may have been due to a tear in vagina or cervix. Packs soaked in Caustic Soda is often used by untrained birth attendants to control PPH and to cauterise any vaginal or cervical tear. However patient was not very clear on what happened except that she was bleeding post delivery.

On 2016 Jul 24, Judy Slome Cohain commented:

Would the authors please comment on the reasons for packing caustic soda in the patient's vagina? Was it meant as future birth control?

On 2016 Jul 24, Judy Slome Cohain commented:

Would the authors please comment on the reasons for packing caustic soda in the patient's vagina? Was it meant as future birth control?