[eden]

and pregnacy. No I am not pregnant,not on birth control pills and not looking for medical advice. I'm just curious does anyone know what effect birth control would have on pregnancy? I hear about people getting pregnant on the pill and have never really thought too much about it until a couple of days ago. I looked on the net and couldn't find much info but it seems to me it it wouldn't really do much right, because they are mostly estrogen and progesterone, both of which are needed to sustain a pregnancy.

So am I competely off base in my rationale? Anyway I'm off to check the net to see what I can come up with.

[augigi]

It depends - can do anything from nothing to spontaneous abortion as far as I am aware (but I'm not an OB nurse)

[prmenrs]

You probably need to check w/your health care provider if this is in regard to yourself...

[BSNtobe2009]

You need to go see your OB-GYN if you think you are pregnant and taking birth control pills or other oral contraception, because that it what it sounds like you are concerned about. The internet is not meant for self-diagnosis, and isn't a replacement for a doctor.

Yeah, it's a pain if it's a false alarm and "stopping" BC and having to restart it...but not half as much of a pain as getting pregnant when you aren't ready for it.

[eden]

No it's really not about me, I said so in my initial post. It's kind of hard to get pregnant when you are not having sex but thank you for the assumption.

If it were about me I would not be here asking. I was simply curious because I see patients on L&D, from time to tme who were on the pill when they got pregnant and we do not label them as high risk ( like we do others who have taken a drug early in pegnancy).

[BSNtobe2009]

I have no medical training, but common sense would say it depends on the drug along with other factors of the mother. I would probably run this by an OB-GYN the next time you are at work or if you are in school, by your instructor.

Birth control pills say very plainly in the instructions if you think you are pregnant you should and see the OB-GYN, and I would suspect they make the call.

[May_baby]

Overall, "accidently" continuing oral contraceptives while pregnant does not place patients in a higher risk category or significantly raise the risk of birth defects.

Oral contraceptives in a typical dose do not function as abortifacients.

*Emergency contraception (EC) is an extremely high and specially timed dose of oral contraceptives intended to prevent ovulation. EC has not been scientifically proved to prevent implantation of a fertilized egg.

The sites below offer basic information on the mechanism for oral contraceptives, contraindications, etc.

Wikipedia page on Oral Contraceptives
Oral contraceptive - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mayo Clinic information on Oral Contraceptives
Birth control pill FAQ: From menstruation to menopause — and everything in between - MayoClinic.com

Merck information on contraception
Contraception: Family Planning: Merck Manual Professional

[SmilingBluEyes]

It's hard to predict. I echo prmenrs. If you are seeking personal information, you really ought to see your own doctor/health care provider. As you know, no medical advice can be given here.

Good luck.

[eden]

As I said before I really do NOT need medical advice and honestly I am not going to say it again because it is clear that no matter what I say people in general will still think I am looking for advice. I cannot make you think otherwise so no reason to keep typing the same thing *shrug*.

I really wanted to generate discussion on the topic.

Thanks May baby, those are some really good sources. That is sort of what I thought. So I'm not completelty off base.

[May_baby]

To add to the discussion (which is what Eden was trying to spark), it would be interesting to note the BMI (Body Mass Index) of many women who got pregnant while on the pill.

Because the hormone levels in most currently marketed oral contraceptives are soooo low (in contrast the pills availabe in the 70's and 80's which were very high dose) a high BMI raises the risk that OC will not be effective.

Think about dosage and body mass and remember that oral contraceptives cannot be adjusted to body mass. (Same goes for the patch and injectible methods)

So a "Fluffy" body type or high BMI (30+) should = extensive counseling on backup methods.