Texas Doctor Stops Prescribing Ortho Evra
In an effort to protect women the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen recently petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to have the Ortho Evra Patch taken off the market. Makers of the patch, Johnson & Johnson are facing legal troubles with civil action lawsuits being filed against them by 3,000 families of women affected. Dr. Waverly Peakes an Ob/Gyn at the Methodist Hospital in Houston, TX points out, “We know that at all times in our lives when we have elevated estrogen we are at increased risk of blood clots, which can be fatal if in the lungs or brain. So even in pregnancy we are all at this elevated risk,” says Peakes. In response to the controversy however, Dr. Peakes has not been prescribing the patch over the last year because of the reported risks associated with its use. While she hopes that further investigation makes a clear and concise conclusion, she believes the risks are too great as of now. “There are too many other options for birth control that the patch should not be given until this is figured out,” Peakes says.
