Emergency contraception pills for people over 40

In clinical practice, we sometimes encounter women around 40 years old coming to the hospital for abortion. Many female friends feel embarrassed. In fact, most women over 40 feel that their chances of pregnancy are smaller as they get older, so they do not take contraceptive measures, or it is because of the failure of condom use. So, are there any emergency contraceptive pills suitable for people over 40 years old?

I received a call a few days ago from a 43-year-old woman who had unprotected sex with her husband. She had heard of the emergency contraceptive pill Yuting, but after buying it, she found out that the instructions stated that women over 40 years old should not take it, otherwise it would increase blood concentration. So I came to consult.

Emergency contraception is a remedial measure to avoid pregnancy by taking medication within 72 hours after having sex without taking any contraceptive measures or after contraceptive measures fail, or by inserting a copper intrauterine device (commonly known as an IUD) within 5 days. There are two main methods you can take: taking medication or having a copper IUD inserted.

Many people know how to use emergency contraceptive pills, but hormonal emergency contraceptive pills are only suitable for women under the age of 39. This is because women over the age of 40 have declining ovarian function and are prone to menstrual disorders or amenorrhea. Taking the pills is more likely to cause menstrual disorders (such as irregular bleeding) or amenorrhea. In fact, there are other emergency contraceptive drugs, and mifepristone is a drug that has been studied more in recent years. Mifepristone (also known as RU486) is a progesterone antagonist with a different mechanism of action from other emergency contraceptives. It was initially used as an early pregnancy abortion drug and was later gradually used to treat some gynecological diseases such as uterine fibroids. Studies in recent years have found that mifepristone can also be used for emergency contraception, with the same contraceptive effect as emergency contraceptives such as Yuting, and an efficiency of about 70%-80%. It is effective when taken orally within 72 hours, and recent studies suggest that it is also effective within 120 hours, but the earlier it is taken, the better the contraceptive effect. The side effects of this drug are relatively mild, mainly nausea, vomiting, headache, dizziness, weakness, and early or late menstruation. Unlike drugs such as Yuting which are only suitable for people under 39 years old, mifepristone has no age limit and can also be taken by women over 40 years old.

No matter what kind of emergency contraceptive pills you take, you need to pay attention to the following: emergency contraceptive pills cannot be used as regular contraceptive pills, and reliable contraceptive measures should be taken from taking the pills until the next menstruation. Emergency contraceptive pills can only be taken once a month. If vomiting occurs within 2 hours after taking the medicine, you should take another tablet immediately. Emergency contraceptive pills may advance or delay the next menstrual period. If your period still has not occurred after one week of the due date, you should go to the hospital for examination immediately to rule out pregnancy. If you are taking other medications, especially anti-epileptic drugs, anti-tuberculosis drugs, antibiotics, antifungal drugs, and antiviral drugs, the contraceptive effect may be reduced. Be sure to consult a doctor in advance.

Finally, I need to remind all female friends that emergency contraceptive pills are a type of drug that is harmful to the body. It is best not to take them unless it is absolutely necessary. In normal times, you should use safe and reliable contraceptive methods to eliminate all possibilities of pregnancy, because abortion surgery is very harmful to women's bodies.