Continuous use of oral contraceptives: an overview of effects and side‐effects

Lene Hee, Laura Ozer Kettner, Mogens Vejtorp
Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica · 2012 · vol. 92(2) , pp. 125–136 · doi:10.1111/aogs.12036 · PMID:23083413 · W1902099471
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This review of oral contraceptive use found that continuous administration decreases menstrual bleeding days and may reduce endometriosis recurrence, though irregular bleeding and long-term data are noted.

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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To describe the effects and side-effects of the continuous use of oral contraceptives. DESIGN: A review of articles concerning oral contraceptives taken continuously or in cycles with hormones taken for more than 21 days per cycle. METHODS: We searched publications in PubMed and Embase. Randomized controlled trials were selected if possible, otherwise case-control studies or cohort studies with controls were chosen. A level of evidence as described by the Centre for Evidence Based Medicine (Oxford University, Oxford, UK) was assigned to all selected studies. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Clinical and paraclinical effects and side-effects of oral contraceptives administered continuously. RESULTS: The studies suggest that the endometrium is inactive during continuous use of oral contraceptives and the risk of endometrial hyperplasia is not increased. Numbers of bleeding days are halved with continuous use; however, spotting and irregular bleeding are more often seen in the beginning of use, decreasing with time. Hemostatic parameters and serum lipid and carbohydrate profiles in continuous and conventional users do not differ. Menstrual cycle-related symptoms are relieved better by continuous treatment. After surgery for endometriosis, the effect of continuously used oral contraceptives on the risk of recurrence of pain has been found to be less than that of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analogues, but better than the rate seen during conventional cyclic use. CONCLUSION: Oral contraceptives taken continuously or in long cycles seem to offer benefits with regard to menstrual symptoms and the recurrence of symptoms related to endometriosis. Long-term studies, comprising large groups of women, are lacking.

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Condition tags

endometriosischronic_pelvic_pain

MeSH descriptors

Contraceptives, Oral Contraceptives, Oral Blood Pressure Blood Pressure Body Weight Body Weight Bone Density Bone Density Contraceptives, Oral Contraceptives, Oral Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometrium Endometrium Endometrium Female Humans Menstruation Menstruation Menstruation

Citation neighborhood

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

References (63)

Cited by (19)

Source provenance

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License: CC0 · commercial use OK