Oral contraceptives are classically given in a cyclic manner with 21 days of active pills followed by 7 days of placebo. In the past 4 years, new oral contraceptives have been introduced which either shorten the placebo time, lengthen the active pills (extended cycle), or provide active pills every day (continuous). These concepts are not new; extended and continuous pills were first studied in...

OBJECTIVE To assess the risk of venous thrombosis in current users of different types of hormonal contraception, focusing on regimen, oestrogen dose, type of progestogen, and route of administration. DESIGN National cohort study. SETTING Denmark, 1995-2005. PARTICIPANTS Danish women aged 15-49 with no history of cardiovascular or malignant disease. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Adjusted rate ra...

UNLABELLED Most studies investigating the impact of oral contraceptives have been performed some years ago, when the level of sexual hormones was greater than the actual formulations. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of current combined oral contraceptives (COC) on periodontal tissues, correlating the clinical parameters examined with the total duration of continuou...

4.1 Absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion The disposition of various formulations of oral contraceptives used in humans differs. In general, both the oestrogenic and progestogenic compounds in combined oral contraceptives are absorbed by the gut and metabolized largely in the liver. A fraction of the absorbed dose of ethinyloestradiol and several progestogens is excreted in the bil...

Introduction Eighty per cent of contraceptive care occurs in the general practice setting. UK Medical Eligibility Criteria provides clear guidelines for the safe provision of appropriate contraception. The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence offer further recommendations for initiation and continuation of the combined contraceptive...

STUDY OBJECTIVE To assess age specific incidence and mortality of stroke, acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and idiopathic venous thromboembolism (VTE) associated with use of modern low dose combined oral contraceptives (OCs) and the interaction with smoking. DESIGN Hospital-based case-control study. SETTING Hospitals in Oxford region in the United Kingdom, which covered a defined populati...

BACKGROUND Recent concerns have been raised about the risk of gallbladder disease associated with the use of drospirenone, a fourth-generation progestin used in oral contraceptives. We conducted a study to determine the magnitude of this risk compared with other formulations of oral contraceptives. METHODS We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the IMS LifeLink Health Plan Claims Dat...