Bleeding pattern and cycle control of a low-dose transdermal contraceptive patch compared with a combined oral contraceptive: a randomized study ★

Objective(s)The aim of this study was to investigate the bleeding pattern and cycle control of a contraceptive patch containing 0.55 mg ethinyl estradiol (EE) and 2.1 mg gestodene (GSD) compared with a combined oral contraceptive (COC) containing 0.02 mg EE and 0.1 mg levonorgestrel (LNG).Study designIn this phase III, randomized, controlled, double-blind, double-dummy, multicenter trial, healthy women aged 18–45 years (smokers aged 18–35 years) received either the EE/GSD patch and a placebo tablet (n= 171), or a placebo patch and the COC (n= 175) for seven 28-day cycles. Bleeding control was assessed in two 90-day reference periods.ResultsMean number of bleeding/spotting days was comparable across treatment groups in both reference periods (p>.05). Mean number of bleeding/spotting episodes was also comparable in reference period 1; however, there were fewer bleeding/spotting episodes for COC in reference period 2 (3.4 versus 3.1; p=.01). Mean length of bleeding/spotting episodes was comparable across treatment groups for both reference periods (p>.05). Withdrawal bleeding occurred consistently in both groups over the entire treatment period, but its absence was more common in the COC group in cycles 4 and 6 of reference period 2 (p<.01). Intracyclic bleeding was comparable between groups.Conclusion(s)Bleeding pattern and cycle control with the EE/GSD patch was comparable to an EE/LNG-containing COC.Implications statementThe findings suggest that bleeding patterns with the EE/GSD patch are similar to an EE/LNG-containing COC, except for absence of withdrawal bleeding, which was less common in patch users. The EE/GSD patch may constitute an additional contraceptive option for women.