New options in contraception for teenagers

Performance of Contraceptive Patch Compared With Oral Contraceptive Pill in a High-Risk Population

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the potential benefit of the transdermal contraceptive patch compared with the oral contraceptive pill for its acceptability and compliance in a population at high risk for future unintended pregnancies and abortions.

METHODS

Assessment of the contraceptive patch and pill was prospective. We gathered information on women undergoing contraceptive counseling at three Planned Parenthood clinics. Discontinuation, adverse effects, and pregnancy outcomes were catalogued. The primary outcome was time to discontinuation of the patch or pill. Survival analyses with life tables and Cox proportional hazards were used to assess acceptability and compliance. Pearl indices were calculated for both the pill and patch.

RESULTS

A total of 1,230 contraceptive-naïve women were identified. Subjects were a racially diverse group of primarily single women. Eighty-nine percent of the study population met our definition of being at high risk for a future unintended pregnancy or pregnancy termination. Loss to follow-up was higher among patch users (45.2% versus 29.5%, P<.001). Verified continued use beyond the first three cycles was lower with a patch (67% versus 89%, P<.001). Skin irritation and site reactions were the treatment-limiting factor for 3.3% of patch users. The 3,206 cycles captured in this study resulted in a Pearl index of 3.62 for the pill and 14.84 for the patch. Differences in the baseline demographic and contraceptive practices may account for this discrepancy although, in multivariate analysis, patch users continued to do worse.

CONCLUSION

In this high-risk population, we found the contraceptive patch to have lower continuation and effectiveness rates. Further research should investigate factors contributing to poorer real-world performance by the patch.

Contraception for college students

An important issue for human beings is the acquisition of normal sexual health, including the understanding and application of reproductive health when needed. Comprehensive sexuality education is not a topic provided to many children, adolescents, or college students in the United States, however. Students who were sexually active in high school may continue to be at risk for unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases in their college life; those who chose abstinence in high school may abandon this concept in college, choosing coital behavior at all levels of university life-freshman through graduate levels. Most American college students are sexually active and many have multiple partners. This article reviews current contraceptive methods available to college students. College health providers and pediatricians are urged to be vigilant about the reproductive health needs of the college students they serve.

Contraception for the adolescent and young adult with congenital heart disease

Increasing numbers of females born with congenital heart disease are reaching childbearing age. Practitioners involved in the management of the adolescents or adults must be aware not only of the risks of pregnancy associated with varying types of CHD but with other issues involving the reproductive cycle to provide appropriate care, counseling, and education.