EFFECT OF A ‘PROGESTIN ONLY’ CONTRACEPTIVE ON PLATELET AGGREGATION IN A PAKISTANI SET OF POPULATION

Authors

  • Nasir Ali Afsar
  • Qamaruddin Barakzai
  • Salman Naseem Adil

Abstract

Background: Safe use of progestin-only hormonal preparations has remained quite controversialthough they are being employed in various disorders very commonly. These hormones result in anumber of adverse effects in the body, the most drastic being predisposition to higher risk ofthromboembolism with reports of involvement of platelets. Despite a large number of studies, nodefinite inference had been derived regarding the effects of these agents on blood coagulation. Ithas been reported that the response in various ethnic groups may vary. Therefore this study isdesigned to observe the effects of progestin-only hormonal contraceptives regarding primaryhemostasis in our population. Methods: We carried out this study on 50 women divided into twoequal groups of 25 each, namely, a group of users of Progestin-only injectable hormonalcontraceptive Norethisterone oenanthate 200 mg used as a 2-monthly injection and a control groupand studied platelet aggregation against ADP, Collagen, Epinephrine and Ristocetin. Results:There was no statistical difference regarding the platelet aggregation studies against ADP,collagen, epinephrine and ristocetin between users and nonusers of progestin-only injectablecontraceptive. The menstrual irregularities were found to be more frequent in users of injectablehormonal contraceptives than in non-users, especially amenorrhea and irregularities of menstrualflow. In users of injectable hormonal contraceptives, hemoglobin and hematocrit were slightlybetter maintained as compared to non-users. Conclusion: This suggests that Norethisteroneoenanthate at currently used doses does not increase the platelet aggregation against ADP,collagen, epinephrine and ristocetin in our population.Key Words: Progestin, Norethisterone, Contraceptive, Coagulation, Thrombosis, Thrombophilia,Platelet Aggregation.

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