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YAZ ? The Most Popular Oral Contraceptive in the U.S. May be Putting Women at Risk

By Jamie G. Goldstein

This past Mother's Day marked another important milestone, the 50^th anniversary of the advent of the birth control pill that revolutionized women's reproductive rights. Today, over 100 million women take oral contraceptives worldwide to prevent unwanted pregnancy, alleviate pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and even treat acne. However, troubling new studies suggest some of the latest generations of the pill may not be as safe as initially thought. Yaz, Yasmin, and its generic form Ocella, have recently been scrutinized for containing drospirenone, a synthetic form of progestin, which has been shown to increase potassium levels in the bloodstream. High potassium levels can lead to hyperkalemia which can cause heart rhythm disturbances. Some studies have indicated drospirenone may also lead to increased risk of blood clots and gallbladder disease.

Blood Clots

Blood clots can form in the legs, lungs, heart, kidney, and liver and can cause deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, stroke, heart attack, and even death. A current study by the FDA on Yaz is underway, but another study on Dutch women found that women taking birth control pills containing drospirenone had a 6.3 times greater risk of experiencing blood clots than women taking no birth control. Another study on Danish women published in the British Medical Journal found that drospirenone had a greater correlation to blood clots than levonorgestrel (another synthetic form of progestin).

Gallbladder Disease

Yaz has also been linked to gallbladder issues. The gallbladder stores bile, which aids in digestion. Gallstones can form from cholesterol or bile particles which can block the bile duct, causing abdominal pain, nausea, fever, and chills. Recurrent gallstones usually require gallbladder removal which like any surgery is painful and could lead to complications such as infection. Women are already twice as likely as men to develop gallbladder problems because of their increased estrogen levels, and some evidence suggests the hormones in birth control pills including Yaz, Yasmin, and Ocella increase this risk.

Were Women Misled?

Yaz and Yasmin have been aggressively and some say unscrupulously advertised to women as a panacea for preventing pregnancy, cramps, PMDD, and acne. The Food and Drug Administration has warned Bayer, the company that produces Yaz, for misleading the public with flashy television campaigns overstating Yaz's effectiveness at treating acne, PMS, and PMDD, for which it has not received FDA approval.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCg1q0h1PP0

Bayer has since pulled the ads, but many women taking Yaz, Yasmin, or Ocella could be exposing themselves to serious health problems without cause. Non-sexually active women who decided to take these medications electively to treat acne or PMDD especially may not have been informed about these serious risks.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jamie G. Goldstein

Full post as published by Chicago Personal Injury Lawyer on May 13, 2010 (boomark / email).