Birth Control Hormonal Methods (cont.)
IN THIS ARTICLE
91-Day Birth Control Pills
The FDA has approved a birth control pill that you take for 12 weeks (84 days) followed by one week (seven days) of an inactive pill. A menstrual period occurs during that week, every three months. The pills (known as Seasonale) contain the hormones already approved for other, 28-day birth control pills.
Instead of having a menstrual period once a month, a woman taking Seasonale would have a period every three months. Although Seasonale users have fewer scheduled menstrual cycles, the data from clinical trials show that many women, especially in the first few cycles of use, had more unplanned bleeding and spotting between the expected menstrual periods than women taking a conventional 28-day cycle birth control pill.
Seasonale is effective for prevention of pregnancy when used as directed.
- The risks of using Seasonale are similar to the risks of using other birth
control pills and include an increased risk of blood clots, heart attack, and
stroke.
- The labeling also carries the warning that cigarette smoking increases the risk of serious heart-related side effects from the use of combination estrogen-and progestin-containing contraceptives.
Next: Progestin-Only Birth Control Pills »
| Printer-Friendly Format | | | Email to a Friend |
Women's Health
Find out what women really need.
From WebMD
Women's Health Resources
- Get the Facts About Mineral Makeup
- Ask the Dermatologist: Anti-Aging Tips
- Health Care Reform: Your Questions Answered
Featured Centers
- Top 10 Asthma Cities
- Health Check: How to Choose The Right Vitamins
- 10 Triggers for the Holiday Blues
Health Solutions From Our Sponsors
Read What Your Physician is Reading on eMedicine
Explore 80+ Centers
- Allergy
- Allergy Medications
- Anaphylaxis
- Antidepressants
- Anxiety
- Arthritis
- Asthma
- Baby's Health
- Back, Neck, Head Injury
- Bioterrorism, Warfare
- Blood, Lymphatic System
- Bone, Joint, Muscle
- Brain, Nervous System
- Breathing Difficulties
- Burns
- Camping
- Cancer, Tumors
- Children's Health
- Cholesterol
- Cold and Flu
- CPR, Choking
- Cuts, Scrapes, Bruises
- Dementia
- Depression
- Diabetes
- Diabetic Coma, Insulin Shock
- Digestive System
- Dislocations
- Drowning
- Drug Overdose
- Ear, Nose, Throat
- Emotional Wellness
- Endocrine System
- Environmental Injuries
- Erectile Dysfunction
- Exercise, Nutrition
- Eye, Vision
- Fainting
- Fever
- First Aid, Emergency
- First Aid Kits
- Food Poisoning
- Foreign Bodies
- Fractures, Broken Bones
- Glaucoma
- Headache
- Health, Medical
- Heartburn, GERD, Reflux
- Heart, Blood Vessels
- Heart Attack
- Hepatitis
- Immune System
- Incontinence
- Infections
- Kidneys, Urinary System
- Lung, Airway
- Medications
- Men's Health
- Mental Health, Behavior
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Nosebleeds
- Osteoporosis
- Outdoor Living
- Overexposure
- Poisoning
- Procedures
- Psoriasis
- Public Health
- Scuba Diving, Swimming
- Seizures
- Senior Health
- Shock
- Skin, Hair, Nails
- Sleep Disorders
- Social, Family Health
- Sports Injury
- Sprains, Strains
- Statins
- STDs
- Substance Abuse
- Teen Health
- Teeth, Mouth, Oral Health
- Weight Management
- Wilderness Emergencies
- Women's Health
- Wounds


