UHS details risks of patch use
Collegian Staff Writer - Megan Miller
01/10/2006 - University Health Services (UHS) informed students about the dangerous side effects of the birth control patch in a series of information sessions that began last semester and will continue tomorrow.
UHS is holding these sessions because the patch is fairly popular among college women, Shelley Haffner, UHS nurse manager, said.
"We wanted to give students all of the information, risk factors and side effects," she said.
UHS is doing this as a patient service, Jill Buchanan, CRNP women's health nurse practitioner, said.
The sessions include information about a November Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warning on the patch about higher exposure to estrogen for women using the weekly patch compared to taking a daily birth control pill containing 35 micrograms of estrogen, which is a commonly prescribed dose.
The FDA announcement stated that "a woman on Ortho Evra may be exposed to approximately 60 percent more estrogen than if she were taking a typical 35 microgram estrogen birth control pill."
The higher levels of estrogen may put some women at an increased risk for blood clots, heart attack and stroke, Haffner said.
Ortho Evra is birth control in the form of a patch that is applied to the skin a week at a time. It is the only skin patch approved for birth control.
The patch is used as birth control, but also for painful periods, irregular menstrual cycles or combinations of all of these, Haffner said.
At the sessions, Haffner and Buchanan inform the attendees on other forms of birth control.
Haffner said the NuvaRing is a highly effective, flexible, transparent vaginal ring containing estrogen and progesterone.
It is 99 percent effective in preventing pregnancy, according to UHS statistics.
The vaginal ring prevents pregnancy in the same way as birth control, except that the medication is continually absorbed through the vaginal wall instead of taken orally.
Haffner recommends the NuvaRing because of the lifestyles of college students.
"Many students don't have a set schedule, and it's difficult to remember to take a pill at the same time every day," she said. "That's why so many like the patch, because it is once a week."
The ring is attractive because of its dosage, Buchanan said. You put it in for three weeks and you're good to go.
Birth control is an individual response.
"They haven't come up with one pill that fits everyone," she said.
What's right for one might not be right for another, Buchanan added.
Sharon Mell, a pharmacist at a Giant Eagle Pharmacy in Pittsburgh, said there are pros and cons to the birth control patch.
"With the patch, you don't have to take a pill daily," she said. "The patch isn't something you forget about ... it is stuck to you."
People may also experience an allergic reaction to the patch, she added.
"People sometimes have an allergy to the adhesive tape," Mell said.
She added that sometimes the patch does not stick to the skin correctly.
While the FDA hasn't taken the patch off of the market, it does recommend that people receive a lower dose of estrogen.
UHS is recommending that women understand the risks and strongly consider a birth control method with a lower dose of estrogen, Haffner said.
"UHS isn't going to stop prescribing the patch, but we don't recommend it," she said. "We won't prescribe the patch if a patient has risk factors such as migraines, is a smoker, etc."
UHS is keeping the patch as a birth control option for women who understand the risk profile, Buchanan said.
She added that she recommends patients choose a different type of birth control.
"I recommend an informed educational approach," she said. "I give a range of options and let the patient decide."
Some girls are requesting a change in prescription. After each session, Haffner and Buchanan take the girls who attend the session into the women's health waiting room and meet with them one on one to advise them on the best method for the individual.
Haffner said she thinks many girls will change their birth control method as a result.
"They must weigh the pros and cons of their current method at least until the FDA can get this settled," she said.
UHS is offering a sixth information session tomorrow, Haffner said. Patients currently prescribed to the birth control patch should attend so they can educate themselves on the risks, she added.