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IUDs, Implants Best for Long-Term Birth Control: Study

Posted 5 days ago by Drugs.com

WEDNESDAY, May 23 – New research suggests that long-term birth control options, such as intrauterine devices (IUDs) and under-the-skin implants, are 20 times more effective for preventing pregnancy than short-term contraceptives, such as birth control pills, patches and rings. "IUDs and implants are very effective; they rival tubal ligation in terms of preventing pregnancy," said study co-author Dr. Jeffrey Peipert, vice chair of clinical research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. "Birth control pills work about 90 percent of the time," Peipert added. "When you think about the millions of women taking them, that's a lot of unintended pregnancies." Results of the study are published in the May 24 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. In the United States, about half of all pregnancies are unplanned, according to the researchers. That rate is significantly ... Read more

Birth Control Pills, HRT Tied to Digestive Ills

Posted 7 days ago by Drugs.com

MONDAY, May 21 – The use of oral contraceptives by younger women or hormone therapy by older women may be linked with inflammatory bowel disease, new research indicates. Birth control pills are associated with a higher risk for Crohn's disease, said researcher Dr. Hamed Khalili, a clinical and research fellow of gastroenterology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Crohn's causes inflammation of the lining and wall of the large or small intestine, or both. The lining can become so inflamed it bleeds. Hormone replacement therapy taken by some women after menopause is linked with ulcerative colitis, the study found. It is a disease of the colon (large intestine) or rectum. It causes diarrhea, abdominal cramping and rectal bleeding. Khalili presented the findings Sunday at the Digestive Disease Week meeting, in San Diego. Of the two links they found, Khalili said, the association ... Read more

More Teen Girls Using Contraceptives: CDC

Posted 3 May 2012 by Drugs.com

THURSDAY, May 3 – More teenage girls are using contraceptives, which may explain part of the dramatic drop in the U.S. teen pregnancy rate, federal health officials reported Thursday. In fact, the teen birth rate has dropped 44 percent since 1990, to 34 births for every 1,000 females. In 2010, about 368,000 infants were born to teen mothers, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "We know there have been declines in teen pregnancy, which is wonderful, and increases in abstinence among teens, which is really wonderful also," said report author Crystal Pirtle Tyler, a CDC health scientist. "There has also been increases in contraceptive use." Tyler noted that there has been a 16 percent decline in teens who say they are sexually active. "The majority of teens report never having had sex," she said. To keep teen pregnancy rates declining, teens and their doctors ... Read more

Prescription Meds Can Put on Unwanted Pounds

Posted 2 Mar 2012 by Drugs.com

FRIDAY, March 2 – Medications taken by millions of Americans for mood disorders, high blood pressure, diabetes and other chronic conditions can have an unhealthy side effect: weight gain. While other choices exist for some types of drugs, adjusting medications is not simply a matter of switching, said Ryan Roux, chief pharmacy officer with the Harris County Hospital District, in Houston. In the late 1990s, Dr. Lawrence Cheskin conducted early research on prescription medicines and obesity. "Some medicines make an early, noticeable difference, causing patients to become ravenously hungry, while changes are subtle for others. A few months taking them and you've gained 10 pounds," said Cheskin, now director of the Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center, in Baltimore. To help increase awareness, Roux and his pharmacist group have compiled a list of "weight-promoting" and "weight-neutral or ... Read more

Contraceptives Work Well in Obese Women, But Hormone Levels Lower

Posted 23 Feb 2012 by Drugs.com

THURSDAY, Feb. 23 – Hormonal contraceptives appear to thwart pregnancy just as well in overweight and obese women as those of normal weight despite markedly lower pregnancy-prevention hormone levels among heavier females, a group of reproductive experts said. During a media briefing held Thursday by the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Society of Family Planning, researchers said few large studies on contraception have included obese women, creating gaps in knowledge about the safety and effectiveness of various methods among this population. About one-third of all American women between ages 20 and 39 are obese, and most of these women will use contraception, said Dr. Vanessa Cullins, vice president of external medical affairs for Planned Parenthood Federation of America. "Obesity and unintended pregnancy are two of our major health epidemics, and this is at the ... Read more

Pfizer Recalls 1 Million Packets of Birth Control Pills

Posted 1 Feb 2012 by Drugs.com

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 1 – About one million packets of birth control pills are being recalled in the United States by Pfizer Inc. because of a packaging error that could reduce the effectiveness of the pills and cause unintended pregnancies. The recall of 14 lots of Lo/Ovral-28 tablets and 14 lots of generic Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol tablets was announced late Tuesday after Pfizer discovered that some blister packs may contain either too many or too few active pills and that the pills may be out of sequence. The expiration dates on the recalled packets range between July 31, 2013 and March 31, 2014. The pills are packaged in blister packs containing 21 active tablets and seven inactive tablets. The packaging error means that the daily regimen for the pills may be incorrect and could leave women without adequate contraception and at risk for unintended pregnancy, Pfizer said in a news ... Read more

More Than Half of Teens Who Gave Birth Weren't Using Contraception: CDC

Posted 19 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com

THURSDAY, Jan. 19 – Slightly more than half of U.S. teenaged girls who had a child between 2004 and 2008 did not use birth control, and a third didn't think they could get pregnant at the time, a new government study finds. Although the number of teens who get pregnant in the United States has fallen in recent years, the U.S. teen birth rate is still the highest of any developed country, with more than 400,000 births in 2009, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "These are the girls who had risky sex and ended up getting pregnant and giving birth," said study co-author Lorrie Gavin, a health scientist with the CDC's Division of Reproductive Health. "This is the group that we should pay most attention to, because they're the ones who experienced unintended births." According to the report, 50.1 percent of girls aged 15 to 19 who had an unintended pregnancy ... Read more

'The Pill' Can Help Ease Period Pain, Study Finds

Posted 17 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com

TUESDAY, Jan. 17 – There's more evidence that use of the oral contraceptive pill can help ease the cramps, bloating and other pain some women experience during their period. Some previous research, as well as anecdotal evidence, have suggested that the Pill could help women with painful periods, but a 2009 review of all available research concluded there was limited evidence for such a conclusion. The new findings, from a Swedish study that has been running for 30 years, show that women who used the combined birth control pill (estrogen plus progestin) suffered less severe pain than women who did not use the Pill, the researchers said. Their study findings appear online Jan. 18 in the journal Human Reproduction. Experts estimate that pain associated with menstrual periods accounts for 600 million lost working hours and $2 billion in lost productivity in the United States each year. One ... Read more

Weight Gain Often Unrecognized by Young Women

Posted 13 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com

FRIDAY, Jan. 13 – Many young American women fail to recognize recent weight gain, and self-perception of weight gain appears to be significantly influenced by race, ethnicity and birth control methods, according to a new study. The findings are important because weight gain increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and other obesity-related health problems, said the researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. They surveyed 466 women, average age 25, about their weight and other health measures every six months for three years. Nearly one-third of the women did not recognize weight gains of 4.5 pounds during a six-month period, and nearly one-quarter did not recognize weight gains of 8.8 pounds. Those most likely to recognize weight gain were black women and those who used the birth control injection depot medroxyprogesterone acetate, or DMPA. The study ... Read more

Could Women's Use of 'the Pill' Raise Men's Prostate Cancer Risk?

Posted 15 Nov 2011 by Drugs.com

MONDAY, Nov. 14 – With the vast increase in the use of the contraceptive pill over the past 40 years, the amount of estrogen entering the water supply may be partly responsible for the increased incidence of prostate cancer around the world, Canadian researchers speculate. Excess estrogen is known to cause various cancers, and the widespread use of the pill might raise environmental levels of the hormone. "Recent studies have shown that estrogen exposure may increase the risk of prostate cancer," said lead researcher Dr. David Margel, a clinical fellow in the Department of Surgical Oncology at Princess Margaret Hospital and the University of Toronto. "We wanted to explore whether there was an association with a woman's use of oral contraceptives to prostate cancer incidence or mortality," he explained. Although the amounts of estrogen excreted by a woman is minimal, when millions of ... Read more

FDA Medwatch Alert: Qualitest Pharmaceuticals Oral Contraceptives: Recall - Packaging Error

Posted 16 Sep 2011 by Drugs.com

includes Cyclafem 7/7/7, Cyclafem 1/35, Emoquette, Gildess FE 1.5/30, Gildess FE 1/20, Orsythia, Previfem, Tri-Previfem ISSUE: Qualitest Pharmaceuticals issued a nationwide, retail-level recall of multiple lots of oral contraceptives because a packaging error may result in the daily regimen for these products being incorrect and could leave women without adequate contraception, and at risk for unintended pregnancy. Select blisters were rotated 180 degrees within the card, reversing the weekly tablet orientation and making the lot number and expiry date no longer visible. BACKGROUND: These packaging defects do not pose any immediate health risks. Pharmacies are being instructed to contact consumers who have received affected product. RECOMMENDATION: Consumers exposed to affected packaging should begin using a non-hormonal form of contraception immediately and consult their health care ... Read more

HHS: Insurers Must Pay for Birth Control for Women

Posted 1 Aug 2011 by Drugs.com

MONDAY, Aug. 1 – Beginning Aug. 1, 2012, women in the United States will have their birth control covered by insurance companies, free of co-pays, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Monday. "Most private health care plans, including the private health care plan available to members of Congress, already include most of these services, including contraception. Family planning is something that keeps women healthy, and it was an important piece of today's announcement," Stephanie Cutter, a White House advisor, told ABC News Monday. The move to make contraception free to women is one of eight new measures aimed at providing "preventive health services" to women, the HHS said. They follow on recommendations from a report issued July 19 by the Institute of Medicine (IOM), which advises the federal government. The new initiatives are based on those recommendations and ... Read more

Can Hormone Therapy or the Pill Prevent Brain Aneurysms?

Posted 5 May 2011 by Drugs.com

THURSDAY, May 5 – Taking birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy could protect women against brain aneurysms later in life, a new study suggests, although one neurologist questioned the quality of the research. Cerebral aneurysms occur when a blood vessel in the brain weakens and balloons out, potentially leading to a hemorrhagic (or bleeding) stroke if the vessel bursts. These types of aneurysms are more common in women than men, possibly because lower levels of female hormones after menopause play a role in their development, the study authors noted. Brain aneurysms are more common after the age of 40 and are most likely to burst when people are in their 50s. In the study, Dr. Michael Chen, of Rush University Medical Center, and colleagues interviewed 60 women who had experienced brain aneurysms and asked about their use of birth control pills and hormone replacement ... Read more

Moms' Use of 'the Pill' Won't Raise Kids' Asthma Risk: Study

Posted 21 Mar 2011 by Drugs.com

MONDAY, March 21 – A woman's use of birth control pills before pregnancy does not increase the risk of respiratory problems in her children, according to a new study. Some studies have suggested that a mother's use of birth control pills may increase the risk of asthma in children, but the data is limited and inconclusive, said the authors of the new study. The researchers examined the link between the type of birth control pill used by Norwegian mothers before pregnancy and lower respiratory tract infections in 60,225 children followed until the age of 6 months, lower respiratory tract infections and wheezing in 42,520 children followed to 18 months old, and asthma in 24,472 children followed until age 3. The investigators found no association between the use of estrogen-progestin combined pills prior to pregnancy and lower respiratory tract infections, wheezing or asthma in children. ... Read more

'The Pill' Works for Women of all Weights

Posted 19 Aug 2010 by Drugs.com

THURSDAY, Aug. 19 – Birth control pills are equally effective in obese and thinner women, claims a study that challenges the belief that oral contraceptives may not reliably prevent pregnancy in heavier women. The study included 226 women, aged 18 to 35, who were normal weight or overweight. They were randomly assigned to take either a lower- or higher-dose version of a birth control pill. After three or four months of using the pill (the time it takes for a woman's body to get used to the contraceptive), the women were checked to see if the pill was suppressing ovulation. Of the 150 women who used the pill consistently, ovulation occurred in three of the 96 normal-weight women and in one of the 54 obese women. Women who were not consistent about taking the pill were more likely to ovulate, said the researchers at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. ... Read more

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Birth Control, Contraception, Gonadotropin Inhibition, Endometriosis, Abnormal Uterine Bleeding