birth-control-33.matches:
birth control pill
Cyclic AMP content of gingival fluid in women taking oral contraceptives.

Grower MF, Lyon DR, Levin MP, Chandler DW.

Gingival fluid samples were collected from 12 healthy adult women who ranged in age from 19 to 34 years. Seven subjects with normal menstrual cycles who received no medications acted as controls while five subjects who had been using oral contraceptives for a minimum of 17 months constituted the experimental group. The women using birth control pills showed a 53% increase in the gingival fluid volume versus the controls. Radioimmunoassay revealed a mean concentration of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) in the gingival fluid of 3.8-10(-6)M in the controls and 1.9-10(-6)M in subjects using oral contraceptives, although the total amount of cAMP present in the fluid from both groups was equal. These gingival fluid cAMP levels were a hundredfold higher than those measured in serum and saliva.

PIP: Dental literature showing that ovarian hormones and oral contraceptives (OCs) can alter the physiologic state of gingival tissues has led to an investigation in which gingival fluid samples were collected from 12 healthy adult women ranging in age from 19 to 34 years. 5 subjects who had been using OCs for at least 17 months constituted the experimental group while 7 received no OCs and formed the control group. Those using OCs exhibited a 53% increase in gingival fluid volume vs. the controls. Radioimmunoassay revealed a mean concentration of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) in the gingival f luid of 3.8-10-6M in the controls and 1.9-10-6M in the subjects using OCs although the total amount of cAMP present in the fluid from both groups was the same. These gingival fluid cAMP levels were 100 times higher than those measured in serum and saliva. An association between the amount of cAMP found in the gingival fluid and the duration of OC use has been apparently absent.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=177743&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-33.matches:
birth control pill
Testing the antifertility drug enovid for carcinogenesis in five strains of mice.

Heston WE.

In testing for any carcinogenic effect of certain hormones the choice of test strain or strains is extremely important. By selecting several inbred strains one obtains maximum genetic variability offering a greater chance of demonstrating carcinogenesis in regard to a number of organs or tissues. The five strains of mice chosen in this study (C3H/He, C3HfB/He, BALB/cHe, A/He, and C5BL/He) provided a test for effect of Enovid at sterilizing doses on occurrence of mammary tumors, ovarian tumors, hepatomas, cervical and vaginal tumors, adrenocortical adenomas, and hypophyseal tumors. Results indicated a slight inhibitor effect of Enovid on mammary tumors in C3H and adrenocortical adenomas in BALB/c and an even greater inhibiotry effect on hepatomas in C3HfB. No effect on ovarian tumors could be detected in the appropriate test provided by C3HfB. In BALB/c females epithelial lesions of the cervix and vagina were observed in both the treated females and the controls with a slight increase in the group treated with the highest dose. All were small lesions observed only in the histologic section. None had invaded beyond the wall of the vagina, and none had metastasized. None could be classified as a frank carcinoma. In the group treated with the highest dose of Enovid, the lesions showed slightly further progression than in the other groups. The most significant tumorigenic effect of the Enovid was the increase in hypophyseal tumors in the C5BL females at advanced age. Direct extrapolation from one strain to another, from one species to another, from mouse to humans, or from one human being to another would be risky because of genetic differences. Approaches to the problem in human beings are, however, suggested. Because of these observations in mice, it would be well, if possible, to collect hypophyses of women at postmortem who have previously been on birth control pills for some time and send these hypophyses to some central laboratory where they can be examined for any changes that might be attributed to the use of the antifertility drug.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=994233&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-3.matches:
birth control pill
Lifestyle changes most often suggested for weight complaints. Special report: annual pill survey.

[No authors listed]

PIP: Family planners responding to an annual oral contraceptives (OC) survey tended to recommend switching pills for complaints of headaches and mood swings and life style changes for the complaint of weight gain. Nearly 3/4 of survey respondents indicated that headaches and mood swings affected less than 5% of their patients. On the other hand, 29% reported that less than 5% of patients complained of weight gain; 27% said 10% complained; 19% said 10-15% complained; 10% said 15 to 20% complained; and 14% said more than 20% of patients complained of weight gain. 57% of the 137 respondents would instruct patients to exercise more and reduce calorie intake, and only 13% would change a patient's pill formulation because of weight gain. Nausea, breast changes, breakthrough bleeding, and compliance issues seem to be more relevant to birth control pills. However, a study indicated that women who discontinue more often do it because more often do it because of weight gain or acne than because of irregular bleeding or amenorrhea. Some women have gained 10-30 lbs using OCs. Researchers in Sweden recorded the secretion of the satiety hormone cholecystokinin during a 24-hour period before and during administration of OCs to 9 women, and found that pills suppressed the serum profiles of cholecystokinin inducing the feeling of hunger. Further studies are needed to evaluate the mechanism of this effect.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12344723&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-3.matches:
birth control pill
As it is in heaven? John Paul II listened to God and misunderstood the message.

[No authors listed]

PIP: This articles focuses on John Paul II's 1993 Veritatis Splendor, an 1798 page encyclical letter to the Church's bishops on the crisis in the Catholic Church of family limitation and the implications for the laity and society. The communication states that a flexible interpretation of theology must be abandoned. Paul VI's 19963 Humanae Vitae is reportedly affirmed. John XXIII's spiritualism and concern with conscience is ignored. This encyclical is identified as not spoken "ex cathedra" or from the throne, which would have made the pronouncement true, unarguable forever, and subject to excommunication for those disobeying. Pope John Paul II is said to be preparing another encyclical on life issues and sexuality. Reference is made in this encyclical to devices that are acceptable to use to gauge a safe period for copulation without impregnation. The devices include the rectal thermometer and the calculator for determining the infertile days in the natural cycle. Veritatis Splendor's position on fertility is viewed as an issue of loyalty to the Church and not as an honest evaluation of the moral implications of artificial birth control. This encyclical comes closer to "ex cathedra" than the Humanae Vitae, which banned the birth control pill, IUD, spermicides, hormonal implants, vasectomies, and tubal ligation. Liberal Catholic theologians are reported to have interpreted Paul VI's statement that "God illuminates from within the hearts of the faithful and invites their assent," as a validation of dissent. Pope John Paul II closes the door to dissent in this proclamation. The Church also closes the door to free will for people to decide for themselves. The Jesuits, with different notions of divine will, are described as potentially concluding that the denial of free will and individual reason for the sake of Papal supremacy must be the work of the devil himself. For good Catholics this encyclical is interpreted as potentially forcing even stronger opposition to the Vatican's teachings and continued adherence to the dictates of their own conscience. A God who gave men and women the power of his reason would not allow the Pope, however infallible, to take this away. Among nonreligious thinkers the Catholic posture is viewed as very wrong on birth control. Divisions within the Church are expected to increase.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12345270&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-3.matches:
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The other partner: the young man's role in adolescent pregnancy.

Berlin C, Berman L.

PIP: The US is the only developed country in which pregnancy among 15-19 year olds has increased in recent years. This study examines the relationship of contraceptive behavior, male gender-role conflict, and future-time perspective among black, white, and Hispanic unmarried adolescent fathers and non-fathers. 86 fathers and 92 non-fathers aged 14-21 years, mostly from New York City and surroundings communities, were sampled in questionnaires. Only six were aged 15 or younger. All participants used contraceptives inconsistently, with most sexually active males either using no contraception, using contraception inconsistently, or using methods known to be ineffective. Fathers did, however, report less consistent use of contraception than non-fathers. Fathers were fathers-by-accident, while non-fathers avoided becoming fathers by chance. Available data on contraception use within this population suggests that teenage males most often rely upon their partners to use a method such as the birth control pill. Further, adolescent fathers did not exhibit gender-role conflicts, suggesting that traditional male gender-role socialization may be more pervasive in our society than has been thought and may transcend differences in fatherhood status. Most adolescents in the present investigation scored on the high end of the scale on gender-role conflict in comparison to O'Neill's 1986 college student sample. Future-time perspective was the same for fathers and non-fathers, indicating that all adolescents may have similar abilities to perceive and plan for the future. The authors stress the need to encourage fathers to use contraception consistently to avoid additional unwanted, repeat pregnancies. Young men need to be encouraged to use contraception before they become sexually active and settle into patterns of high-risk sexual behavior.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12345686&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-3.matches:
birth control pill
The truth about oral contraceptives, heart attack, stroke and blood clots.

[No authors listed]

PIP: Smoking is dangerous for all women, regardless of the method of contraception used. Women who smoke and take the oral contraceptive pill should stop smoking, since the combined effect of smoking and oral contraception may increase a woman's risk of heart attack compared to smoking only. Since women under age 35 who smoke and use the pill are at greater risk of death from pregnancy and childbirth than from using the pill, smoking and not oral pill use should be eliminated from their lives in the interest of practicing a safe and highly effective mode of birth control. Pill use is definitely not recommended for women aged 35 and older who smoke. Many programs exist to help one stop smoking. Stopping smoking is very important to reduce one's risk of stroke whether or not the pill is being used. Exactly how much the pill may or may not increase a woman's risk of getting a blood clot is controversial, although blood clots among otherwise healthy pill users who do not smoke are rare. In addition to being a very safe method of birth control which is highly effective when taken correctly and consistently, birth control pill use protects women against ovarian cancer, endometrial cancer, painful or irregular periods, breast cysts, iron deficiency anemia, ectopic or tubal pregnancy, and infections of the fallopian tube requiring hospitalization. Healthy, nonsmoking women can safely take the pill right up until menopause.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12346301&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-3.matches:
birth control pill
Norplant may be too costly for low income women.

[No authors listed]

PIP: Norplant was developed by the Population Council in 1980, approved by the USFDA in December 1990, and has been marketed in the US since February 1991. The US was the 17th country to give regulatory approval to the contraceptive delivery system. Norplant has been used by more than 700,000 women worldwide and is currently used by more than 15,000 women in the US. The high up-front cost of this new method of contraception, however, keeps many women, such as poor women and teenagers, from using Norplant. The $800-1000 total cost of Norplant over a five-year period makes contraception with Norplant less expensive than use of the birth control pill, but many American women simply cannot conveniently amass the $800-1000 needed at the beginning of the five-year period for the purchase and insertion of Norplant. Removal of the Norplant rods is an added expense. There are, however, signs that Norplant may be made more accessible to low-income women in the US. The planned production and marketing of a two-rod version of Norplant should lower the price and make removal easier. Furthermore, Medicaid has recently decided to partially reimburse Norplant users in some states, and insurance companies have recently begun to reimburse their clients for Norplant. Wyeth-Ayerst, manufacturers of Norplant, recently announced that a foundation will be established to help low-income women pay for the contraceptive.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12346943&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-3.matches:
birth control pill
House agrees with president that delay in international family planning aid causes harm.

[No authors listed]

PIP: On February 13, the U.S. House of Representatives approved (220-209) HJR 36, which would release funds for the overseas family planning program administered by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on March 1. Under the initial spending measure approved as part of the omnibus appropriations package passed in September 1996, funds would have been released on July 1 (9 months into the budget year), unless President Clinton determined the delay was having a "negative impact on the proper functioning of the family planning assistance program". On January 31, President Clinton determined that the budget freeze of these funds would "cause serious, irreversible, and avoidable harm". The vote on HJR 36 will not affect the stipulation that the money for the year must be released in month-by-month installments. The president's decision was based on a report by USAID which showed that withholding funds would have the following results: 50 million condoms, 4.8 million cycles of birth control pills, and 500,000 IUDs would not be provided; and 17 of 95 USAID-funded family planning programs in 50 countries might have to be closed. The Foreign Operations funding bill for fiscal year 1996 had already decreased funds for family planning by 35% from the previous year to $356 million; a compromise between the House and Senate increased this amount to $385 million for fiscal year 1997. The House, on February 13, also passed HR 581 (231-194), which would reinstate a policy of Presidents Reagan and Bush: any organization receiving U.S. family planning aid would have to certify that it did not provide abortions, even if other sources paid for them, except in cases of life endangerment, rape, or incest. Such organizations must also certify that they would not violate or lobby to change abortion laws, except in opposition to coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization. Passage of this bill, which was introduced by Representative Christopher Smith (R-NJ) and which would remove the month-by-month distribution of aid, is considered to be symbolic; one objection would keep it from a vote in the Senate.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12347836&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-4.matches:
birth control pill
Contraceptive technology.

Potts M, Atkinson L.

PIP: A question of the 1980s is how will contraceptive technology contribute to improving family planning services to meet the goal of making available a simple, safe, effective, and widely acceptable contraceptive method. Significant changes in existing technology in the 1970s resulted in safer and more effective contraceptive methods. Voluntary sterilization emerged as the primary method in developed and developing countries, as important modifications simplified the procedure for women. The tolerance and effectiveness of the IUD were improved by reducing its size, adding copper to its surface, or encapsulating progesterone within it. The steroid content of the birth control pill was reduced 10-fold, leading to fewer side effects, and the pill was found to be an effective postcoital contraceptive when taken at specific intervals. Vacuum aspiration for the termination of 1st trimester pregnancy proved to be 1 of the safest surgical techniques practiced. Belated attention is now being focused on adapting existing contraceptive methods for use during the postpartum period and breast feeding. The insertion of an IUD immediately following childbirth is a particularly useful option in the developing world as an increasing number of women have their babies in urban hospitals. A method of enhancing the contraceptive effect of breast feeding should neither change milk production nor transfer the drug to the nursing infant. Fortunately, progestin-only pills have been found to have no effect on breast milk and an attempt is being made to expand the use of this approved method. More simplification of female sterilization is needed. Current techniques require back-up facilities in case of complications and are unlikely to meet the developing world's enormous demand. 2 methods not widely used -- spermicides and periodic abstinence -- are coming under new scrutiny. In mid-1983 the US Food and Drug Administration approved a spermicide-impregnanated disposable sponge for over-the-counter sale in the US, and other disposable vaginal barriers might also be developed. The 1980s are likely to see some significant new ways of delivering well-known steroids for female contraception. US government policy forbids the support of research on abortion technology, and private pharmaceutical firms have been criticized for working in this field. In other parts of the world, research continues into the action of prostaglandins. Several developments are not likely to occur in the 1980s -- a contraceptive pill for males, analogs of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone as new methods of fertility control for women, and a vaccine.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12339639&dopt=Abstract birth control pill



birth-control-4.matches:
birth control pill
Husbands' sex-role preferences and contraceptive intentions: the case of the male pill.

Marsiglio W.

PIP: This study examines the relationships among husbands' sex-role preferences, perceptions of contraceptive responsiblity, and hypothetical intentions regarding the possible adoption of a male birth control pill. Data are drawn from a mailed survey of 49 husbands during 1982 in Columbus, Ohio. The following 3 hypotheses were advanced: husbands with more egalitarian sex-role preferences will evidence a greater stated likelihood of male pill usage than traditional husbands; husbands with more egalitarian sex-role preferences will be more likely to view contraception as a shared responsibility than traditional husbands; and husbands who view contraception as a shared responsibility rather than the wife's responsibility will evidence a greater stated likelihood of male pill usage. 4 variables were used in the analyses: likelihood of male pill usage; sex-role preferences; locus of contraceptive responsibility; and attitude toward the personal use of a male pill. 69% of the husbands indicated they would be somewhat or very likely to use a male pill. The 1st 2 hypotheses were supported but the 3rd was not. Egalitarian sex-role preferences are positively related to the stated likelihood of male pill usage. This appears to be partially due to the suppressor effect of husbands' concern with a pill's chemical attributes. The absence of a significant relationship between husbands' perceptions of contraception as a shared responsibility and their stated likelihood of using a male pill and the significant but modest relationship between sex role preferences and the likelihood of pill usage suggest that this concern is not as critical as initially hypothesized. Egalitarian sex-role preferences do not necessarily mean a strong commitment to share contraceptive responsibility. Further research on the relationship between males' sex-role preferences and contraceptive decision making is warranted.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12340487&dopt=Abstract birth control pill