Patients should be counseled that this product does not protect against HIV infection (AIDS) and other sexually transmitted diseases.
Cigarette smoking increases the risk of serious cardiovascular side effects from oral contraceptive use. This risk increases with age and with heavy smoking (15 or more cigarettes per day) and is quite marked in women over 35 years of age. Women who use oral contraceptives should be strongly advised not to smoke.
DESCRIPTION
Sprintec® Tablets are a combination oral contraceptive containing the progestational compound norgestimate and the estrogenic compound ethinyl estradiol.
Each blue tablet contains 0.250 mg of the progestational compound norgestimate (18, 19-Dinor-17-pregn-4-en-20-yn-3-one,17-(acetyloxy)-13-ethyl-, oxime, (17α)-(+)-) and 0.035 mg of the estrogenic compound, ethinyl estradiol (19-nor-17α-pregna, 1,3,5(10)-trien-20-yne-3, 17-diol), and the inactive ingredients include anhydrous lactose, FD&C blue no. 2 aluminum lake, lactose monohydrate, magnesium stearate, and pregelatinized starch.
Each white tablet contains only inert ingredients as follows: anhydrous lactose, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose 2208, magnesium stearate, and microcrystalline cellulose.
The structural formula is as follows:
CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY
Oral Contraception
Combination oral contraceptives act by suppression of gonadotropins. Although the primary mechanism of this action is inhibition of ovulation, other alterations include changes in the cervical mucus (which increase the difficulty of sperm entry into the uterus) and the endometrium (which reduce the likelihood of implantation).
Receptor binding studies, as well as studies in animals and humans, have shown that norgestimate and 17-deacetyl norgestimate, the major serum metabolite, combine high progestational activity with minimal intrinsic androgenicity.90-93 Norgestimate, in combination with ethinyl estradiol, does not counteract the estrogen-induced increases in sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG), resulting in lower serum testosterone.90,91,94
Acne
Acne is a skin condition with a multifactorial etiology. The combination of ethinyl estradiol and norgestimate may increase sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and decrease free testosterone resulting in a decrease in the severity of facial acne in otherwise healthy women with this skin condition.
Norgestimate and ethinyl estradiol are well absorbed following oral administration of Sprintec. On the average, peak serum concentrations of norgestimate and ethinyl estradiol are observed within two ho
