UAE residents warn against oral contraceptive side effects

Women who have suffered complications after using oral contraceptives have urged caution about using the pill.

Women who have suffered complications after using oral contraceptives have urged caution about using the pill. Ravindranath K / The National

Contraceptive pills:

■ Women must be made aware of contraceptive pill risks, say UAE doctors

■ UAE residents warn against oral contraceptive side effects

■ Contraceptives rarely covered by health insurance in UAE

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ABU DHABI // Women who have suffered from ailments after taking oral contraceptives have urged caution about using the pills.

H K, 27, a Jordanian who lives in Abu Dhabi, was diagnosed with deep-vein thrombosis in one of her legs just a month after starting to use the pills.

“I started taking it a week before my wedding, and three weeks later I was admitted to hospital with a urine infection,” she said.

“I had severe pain in my right leg while I was in the hospital, then the doctors diagnosed that I had deep-vein thrombosis in the leg because of the birth-control pills. I stayed in the hospital without moving for a week. The pain was unbelievable, the leg was swollen and they had to give me medicines to sleep.”

She was told to avoid air travel for six months and not to get pregnant for a year.

“Following this, I will need to consult my gynaecologist before I try to have a baby,” she said. “This turned my life upside down. I was unable to travel for long distances, no sports were allowed for a year, and now I am always on high risk for getting it back.

“Even if I want to travel for long distances, I have to take a strong blood thinner before I leave. I wish I had not taken this medicine.”

J M, 44, a Colombian mother-of-two who lives in Abu Dhabi, was on the pill for a year and also developed DVT.

“I have a condition that makes the blood thicker when I am on pills and I was not aware of this family history,” she said. “I found out when I was in hospital for a week. I lost my first child due to complications.”

She urged: “Get examined properly before starting the pill. Be more cautious and careful and find out your family history,” she said.

G H, 46, a Briton, was on the pill for 18 years.

“Three years ago, I started having the most blinding headaches and I would be pill popping for days. There was a pattern. I went to a doctor and he told me my age put me in a high-risk category and he asked me to stop taking the pill immediately,” said the Abu Dhabi resident.

“Go to a reputable person. If you have a nagging doubt, definitely get a second opinion. You are the person who knows your body. Speak to your friends and ask about the gynaecologists they go to,” she said.

A DVT is a blood clot that forms in a deep leg vein. In a patient who has DVT, the blood flow in the vein is partially or completely blocked by the blood clot.

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About this package:

UAE doctors are warning women against the potential side effects of oral contraceptive pills. They say women need to be made aware of serious health risks such as blood clots and heart attacks to the more mild ones like weight gain or fluid retention.

With no plans for contraceptive pills and intrauterine devices to be included under health insurance coverage, women who have suffered from ailments after using oral contraceptives have urged caution.