>I read in the paper today about the new birth control pill approved
>by the FDA, preven I believe that is supposed to be on the shelves by
>the end of the month.  It's a post-intercourse pre-pregnancy pill
>that is supposed to stop pregnancies (or from babies adhering to the
>uterus).  Does anyone know if there is any information on how this
>will affect lactating mothers?  Or the rate of birth defects for
>pregnancies that are not terminated by the pill?


Preven is actually nothing new; it's merely a new packaging of what is
often referred to as the "morning after pill". For many years, certain
combined oral contraceptives have been prescribed "off label" as emergency
contraception in the event of contraceptive failure or unprotected
intercourse. The office where I work uses Nordette, but there a number of
other OCs that would work. Depending on which pill is used, two or four
tablets are taken as soon as possible within 72 hours, and another dose of
two or four tablets is taken 12 hours later. These pills either delay or
inhibit ovulation, or inhibit implantation.

Preven will consist of two doses of two pills each.

In the event that emergency contraception fails, there is no evidence of
any increased risk of birth defects. I don't know if there are any specific
studies about emergency contraception, but studies of births to women who
continued to take OCs not realizing they were pregnant haven't shown any
increased risk of birth defects.

Because the pills do contain estrogen, there probably could be some effect
on lactation. But because a woman is only getting a short burst of
estrogen, I'm not sure how big an effect it would have. The only time our
office ever dealt with this was with a woman who was already in the process
of weaning her 3 year old, and she was actually hoping the pills *would*
reduce her milk supply.

Judi Hammett
Family planning counselor, LLLL

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Judi Hammett
Baltimore, Maryland USA
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