Pregnancy & Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo

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Women who become pregnant should stop taking Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo immediately.


Overview

Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo is an oral contraceptive that contains ethinyl estradiol (synthetic estrogen) and norgestimate (synthetic progestin). Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo is an effective method in preventing pregnancy, though it should not be taken if you are pregnant.

Mechanism

The influx of hormones from Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo works in three ways to prevent a pregnancy: suppressing ovulation, thickening the cervical mucus and thinning the uterine lining.

Effectiveness

Statistics provided by Drugs.com show that out of every 100 women who use Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo, 2.36 women become pregnant.

Pregnancy Drug Category

EMedTV reports Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo is classified as a category X pregnancy drug by the Food and Drug Administration. Use during pregnancy could cause risks to a fetus.

Dangers

Even though Ortho Tri-Cycle Lo is a category X drug, eMedTV notes if it is taken accidentally during a pregnancy, there were no increased risks of birth defects.

Recommendation

If you discover you are pregnant, stop taking Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo immediately.

Photo Credit

Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Meagan J. Wooley
Liz Stannard

About this Author

Liz Stannard has her bachelor's of science degree in neuroscience, with minors in classics and Japanese. She has been a freelance writer for five years, covering women's health, politics and medicine.

Last updated on: 11/11/09

Article reviewed by C.J. Tompkins

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