Ob-gyn group stops prescribing Ortho Evra
The serious health risks associated with the Ortho Evra patch is enough to compel one Knoxville, TN ob-gyn group to stop prescribing it to patients. Hundreds of women are receiving letters, citing an American College of Gynecology study exposing the greater risk of deep vein thrombosis in women using the Ortho Evra birth control patch. Parkwest Women's Specialists have decided to change their patients to another form of birth control. Obstetrician/Gynecologist Rosalind Cadigan says “With the Ortho Evra patch, at the end of the month, you end up getting more estrogen in your body than a pack of birth control pills.” Doctor Cadigan will prescribe the Ortho Evra patch to her patients, with informed consent, but she does recommend other options, due to the risks. “FDA has not taken the Ortho Evra patch off the market, but several people, several clinicians have been worried about the possibility. The bottom line is that pregnancy is going to be a higher risk situation than the Ortho Evra patch. So, your risk of having a blood clot in your leg or a pulmonary embolism due to pregnancy is higher than the risk of having that with an Ortho Evra patch,” Dr. Cadigan says
