New morning-after pill ellaOne works up to 5 days
Related: ellaOne, morning-after pill, study
According to a new study, a new kind of morning-after pill is more effective than the most widely used drug at preventing pregnancies and it also works longer, for up to five days.
Levonorgestrel, the most widely used emergency contraceptive pill, is only effective if women take it within three days of having sex. It is sold under several brand names like Levonelle and Plan B, and is available in more than 140 countries, including the United States and Canada. In almost 50 of those countries women can get it without a prescription.
Researchers compared Plan B to the new drug ulipristal acetate, sold as ellaOne in Europe only with a doctor’s prescription. The drug is not legally on the market anywhere else.
Experts watched nearly 1,700 women aged 16 to 36 who took emergency contraception within three to five days of unprotected sex. Roughly half got Plan B while the rest got ellaOne.
In the Plan B group, there were 22 pregnancies. In the ellaOne group, there were 15. In both groups, the most frequently reported side effect was a headache. The research was paid for ellaOne’s maker, HRA Pharma, which helped design the study.
Last Updated on January 29th, 2010
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