Morning-after pill well tolerated by teen girls

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Levonorgestrel, a pill that is used for emergency contraception after unprotected sexual intercourse, is well tolerated by females aged 13 to 16 years and side effects are minor, according to researchers in the US and Switzerland.

Previous studies have shown the drug to be well tolerated by adult women, but the tolerability and acceptability in adolescents was unclear.

In the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dr. Cynthia C. Harper, from the University of California at San Francisco, and colleagues note that they administered levonorgestrel tablets to 52 adolescent females. 

They were given one tablet and instructed to take another 12 hours later.

Nearly all of the subjects were able to take the medication correctly and no serious side effects were noted. Nausea, fatigue, and vomiting were relatively common, but short-lived. The age of the individual patient appeared to have no bearing on the occurrence of side effects.

Treatment with the drug did not affect the duration of menstrual periods—before and after treatment the average duration was about 5 days. Moreover, the periods began within the expected time frame, the researchers note.

Satisfaction with levonorgestrel appeared to be high as 90 percent of subjects said they would recommend this form of emergency contraception to a friend or relative.

The authors conclude that “this study adds to the growing body of evidence to show that adolescents in particular tolerate the medication well and appear to be able to use it correctly.”

SOURCE: American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, October 2004.

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