Blood clot risk similar in vaginal ring and pill

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Comparison of a contraceptive
vaginal ring with an oral contraceptive suggests that the ring
does not have a higher risk of causing a blood clot,
researchers report in the American Journal of Obstetrics and
Gynecology.

Lead investigator Dr. Mandana Rad, of the Center for Drug
Research, Leiden, the Netherlands, and colleagues note that
steroid use in contraception may increase the risk of blood
clots, also referred to as venous thromboembolism, through
effects on the liver, and that non-oral routes of
administration could alter this exposure.

To determine how delivery characteristics might differ
between the contraceptive vaginal ring an oral contraceptive,
the researchers studied 45 healthy women who were randomly
assigned to use one of the drugs for 77 days. Blood samples
were taken a week before the start and toward the end of
treatment.

The researchers found that drug exposure to the liver
administered by the vaginal ring was similar to that given via
the oral contraceptive. There is no reason to believe that the
thrombosis risk in ring users will be greater than that with
oral contraceptives, they note.

“A single vaginal ring can provide contraception for one
year,” Dr. Rad told Reuters Health. “It’s easy to use, a
reliable contraceptive method, and to our knowledge as safe as
the most well-established hormonal contraceptives.”

The ring was designed for use in developing countries by
the Population Council, he added.

SOURCE: American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, July
2006.