g of your uterus does not undergo the changes needed for menstruation, and therefore you do not have regular menstrual periods. You are likely to have unscheduled or unplanned bleeding or spotting when you start to use LYBREL. The number of days each month with unscheduled bleeding and spotting usually decreases over time for the majority of women. When using LYBREL, the convenience of having no regular menstrual periods should be weighed against the inconvenience of unscheduled or unplanned breakthrough bleeding and spotting.
For the majority of women, oral contraceptives can be taken safely. However, there are some women who are at high risk of developing certain serious diseases that can be life-threatening or may cause temporary or permanent disability or death. The risks associated with taking oral contraceptives increase significantly if you:
smoke
have high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, or a tendency to form blood clots, or are obese
have or have had clotting disorders, heart attack, stroke, angina pectoris, cancer of the breast or sex organs, jaundice, malignant or benign liver tumors, or major surgery with prolonged immobilization
have headaches with neurological symptoms
You should not take the pill if you suspect you are pregnant or have unexplained vaginal bleeding.
Although cardiovascular disease risks may be increased with oral contraceptive use in healthy, non-smoking women over 40 (even with the newer low-dose formulations), there are also greater potential health risks associated with pregnancy in older women.
Cigarette smoking increases the risk of serious adverse effects on the heart and blood vessels from oral contraceptive use. This risk increases with age and with the amount of smoking (15 or more cigarettes per day has been associated with a significantly increased risk) and is quite marked in women over 35 years of age. Women who use oral contraceptives should not smoke.
Most side effects of the pill are not serious. The most common such effects are nausea, vomiting, unscheduled bleeding, weight gain, breast tenderness, and difficulty wearing contact lenses. These side effects, especially nausea and vomiting, may subside within the first three months of use.
The serious side effects of the pill occur very infrequently, especially if you are in good health and do not smoke. However, you should know that the following medical conditions have been associated with or made worse by the pill:
Blood clots in the legs (thrombophlebitis), lungs (pulmonary embolism), stoppage or rupture of a blood vessel in the brain (stroke), blockage of blood vessels in the heart (heart attack and angina pectoris) or other organs of the body. As mentioned above, smoking increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes and subsequent serious medical consequences. Women with migraine also may be at increased risk of stroke with pill use.
Liver tumors, which may rupture and cause severe bleeding. A possible, but not definite, association has been found with the pill and liver cancer. However, liver cancers are extremely rare. The chance of developing liver cancer from using the pill is thus even rarer.
High blood pressure, although blood pressure usually returns to normal when the pill is stopped.
The symptoms associated with these serious side effects are discussed in the detailed leaflet given to you with your supply of pills. Notify your health care provider if you notice any unusual physical disturbance
