Combined oestrogen-progestin oral contraceptives cause venous thromboembolism in women of reproductive age. Healthcare providers typically rely on women’s characteristics, medical history and family history to select the most appropriate contraceptives, in an effort to reduce risks of venous thromboembolism. This position paper discusses the use of a new prediction tool (Pill Protect®), availab...

AIM To review milestones in development of oral contraceptive pills since their introduction in the US 50 years ago in order to better understand how a new formulation with low-dose estrogen in an extended-cycle pattern fits into the evolution of birth control pills. METHODS This is a review of trends in the development of various birth controls pills and includes data from phase III clinical...

A mother and daughter are described with premature menopause and deletion of the X chromosome at q28. Structural anomalies of the X chromosome and ovarian failure are well known.' Secondary amenorrhoea, recognised as premature menopause and involving an X chromosomal deletion, has only been described on two occasions, the breakpoints being at q252 and q26.3 We describe familial inheritance of a...

Objective: To assess whether provision of educational leaflets or questions on contraception improves knowledge of contraception in women taking the combined contraceptive pill. Design: Randomisation of women into three groups according to type of educational leaflet on contraceptive information. These groups were subdivided into two on the basis of questions on contraception asked by the docto...

BACKGROUND The availability of reliable contraception tailored to suit women's needs and lifestyles is an essential step in addressing unintended pregnancy and its substantial human and financial costs. The daily combined oral contraceptive pill has been the short-acting hormonal contraceptive of choice for the last 50 years. However, for some women, this may be neither suitable nor optimal. ...

OBJECTIVE This study compared 84-day bleeding patterns after immediate initiation of a triphasic oral contraceptive with a 25-mug daily dose of ethinyl estradiol (E2) compared with the contraceptive vaginal ring, which has a 15-mug daily dose of ethinyl E2. METHODS This was an open-label controlled trial. We randomly assigned 201 women to immediate start of a contraceptive pill or immediate s...

OBJECTIVE To compare the efficacy of a new low-dose oral contraceptive pill (OCP) formulation with placebo in reducing symptoms of premenstrual dysphoric disorder. METHODS This multicenter, double-blind, randomized clinical trial consisted of 2 run-in and 3 treatment cycles with daily symptom charting; 450 women with symptoms of premenstrual dysphoric disorder were randomized to either placeb...

CONTEXT Discontinuation of oral contraceptives often puts women at risk for unintended pregnancies. Understanding why a woman discontinued pill use can provide insight into her risk of discontinuation if she restarts use. METHODS Women younger than 25 obtaining oral contraceptives at three university health centers in 2003-2005 were recruited to participate in a randomized trial; 628 former u...

BACKGROUND Headache is a prevalent and disabling condition affecting people in all age groups worldwide, leading to low job performance and quality of life with a significant economic burden on societies. OBJECTIVE We evaluated headache prevalence and characteristics and some probable associated factors in patients referring to neurology specialist clinics. STUDY DESIGN Cross sectional stud...

Luc Bovens, in his 2006 article, argues that it can be shown that the 'rhythm' method of birth control results in a larger number of embryonic deaths than the IUD, the morning after pill or the combination oral contraceptive pill, just so long as one accepts his three 'plausible' assumptions. In this brief response I will argue that Boven's third assumption is not plausible when one takes into ...