quote:The warning from Johnson and Johnson subsidiary Ortho McNeil, makers of Ortho Evra, says women using the patch will be exposed to about 60 percent more estrogen than those using typical birth-control pills because hormones from patches get into the bloodstream and are removed from the body differently than those from pills.
Thursday's warning comes four months after The Associated Press reported that patch users die and suffer blood clots at a rate three times higher than women taking the pill.
quote:Although the patch and most birth-control pills contain the same amounts of estrogen, new published studies show that women using the patch absorb about 50 percent more estrogen than with the pill, said Dr. Leslie Miller, an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Washington.
quote:Documents released to attorneys as a result of that litigation show Ortho McNeil has been analyzing the FDA's death and injury reports, creating its own charts that document a higher rate of blood clots and deaths in association with the patch than with the pill.
In addition, an internal Ortho McNeil memo shows that the company refused, in 2003, to fund a study comparing its Ortho Evra patch to its Ortho-Cyclen pill because of concerns there was "too high a chance that study may not produce a positive result for Evra" and there was a "risk that Ortho Evra may be the same or worse than Ortho-Cyclen."
Last week, in response to AP questions about the Ortho McNeil memo, company spokesman Michael Beckerich said in a written statement that "decisions to fund studies are based upon scientific merit."
I just find it harder and harder to trust pharmaceutical companies. *sigh*
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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Wow. What about those pills that make women menstruate less and that shot that makes women not do it at all?
Posts: 9942 | Registered: Mar 2003
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I don't like the patch OR the pill...but my pediatrician (yes, I still see a pediatrician) recommends the patch for younger women because you don't have to remember to take it every day. And that was a HUGE advantage.
posted
I vote for the NuvaRing. Seems more reliable to have something inside working every day rather than just on the skin, and more reliable than remembering to take a pill daily. That's just me, though.
Posts: 1014 | Registered: Jul 2005
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Yeah, the one ring is a nice thing to have (and appears to be about the only hormonal bc I can safely use - pills raise my cholesterol levels quite high).
Another thing women may not realize is that the patch is less effective in women who are overweight (since it is transdermal, excess fat lessens the amount of hormones absorbed by the bloodstream).
Posts: 5879 | Registered: Apr 2001
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Sex hormones are fat soluble (since they are cholesterol derivatives). More fat to dissolve in; lower concentration actually in the right places, I would imagine.
Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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I'd be too worried about the patch getting jostled too much and coming loose or falling off to use it. I prefer the pill, with which I can do damage control because I'll know if I took it or not and can plan accordingly.
Posts: 4655 | Registered: Jan 2002
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The only non-barrier form of birth control which does not elevate a woman's risk of blood clots is the copper IUD. Of course, unless you have a clotting disorder of one type or another, and as long as you live a healthy lifestyle (and especially don't smoke!), your chances of getting a blood clot are very small.
However…
Just because your family doesn’t have a history of clotting disorders, and you’ve never shown any signs of clotting, doesn’t mean that the problem isn’t lurking somewhere in your DNA. I know – I got a very serious blood clot after starting the Pill, and only later found out that I have a number of clotting disorders. I was in a wheelchair for about a month, and almost had to withdraw from all of my classes that semester. So, please, please, if you’re on some form of hormonal birth control, be sure you at least know the signs of a forming blood clot.
Posts: 2409 | Registered: Sep 2003
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