A NEW "morning after" pill which can prevent pregnancy for nearly a week after unprotected sex has been welcomed by pro-choice campaigners and patients' groups in Scotland who say it will allow women more time to seek help.
Ulipristal acetate (UA) – dubbed the "week after" pill – provides a contraception "window" of up to five days, compared with just three for the traditional emergency pill.
But the news provoked a critical reaction from the Catholic Church in Scotland who said emergency contraception encouraged risk-taking.
Research published today shows the drug UA reduced the risk of pregnancy by more than 50 per cent compared with the 72-hour pill, levonorgestrel.
Although UA has been licensed in Europe since last May, it is not yet available over the counter and costs three times more than the alternative drug.
Doctors writing in the Lancet medical journal combined their own findings with data from an earlier study.
Women attending clinics in the UK, Republic of Ireland and the US seeking emergency contraception within five days of unprotected sex were randomly given one of the two pills.
Among the total of 1,694 women, there were 15 pregnancies in the UA group and 22 in the levonorgestrel group.
And in another study, three out of 203 women who asked for emergency contraception between three and five days after sexual intercourse became pregnant, all of whom had taken levonorgestrel.
Combining the results of both trials showed that women taking UA were almost half as likely to get pregnant as those taking the traditional morning after pill within five days after sexual intercourse.
If emergency contraception was used within 24 hours of having unprotected sex, UA reduced the risk of pregnancy by almost two thirds compared with levonorgestrel.
The researchers, led by Professor Anna Glasier, from the University of Edinburgh and NHS Lothian in Scotland, said the expected pregnancy rate of women in their trial was less than 6 per cent.
Levonorgestrel could be obtained without prescription because after being used by many millions of women, its safety was assured, said the researchers.
In the trial, the most serious side effect associated with UA was a case of dizziness.
Ann Furedi, chief executive of the abortion charity the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS), said: "This new type of emergency contraceptive pill is exciting news for those of us working to help women avoid unintended pregnancy. It offers a longer time window for use than the traditional emergency contraception pill.
"However, accessibly is key to the uptake of any time-sensitive medication and since this pill is not available over-the-counter and is significantly more expensive to buy than the traditional morning after pill, it may be that many women who could benefit from it are not able to access it."
Peter Kearney, spokesman for the Catholic Media Office, said: "Several years of evidence indicate the use of the morning after pill has created a false sense of security and resulted in far greater risk-taking by many people.
"As Scotland's large rate of teenage pregnancies shows the problem with the traditional morning after pill is not that its effects do not last long enough but that women don't take it."
But Margaret Watt, chairwoman of Scotland Patients Association, said:
"There are so many kids having unprotected sex and then find themselves alone and frightened not knowing who to turn to.
"A pill like this would give them that little bit longer to talk to someone and decide what to do."
EXTRA LAYER OF PROTECTION
• THE morning-after pill works for up to 72 hours after unprotected sex but is most effective if taken within 12 hours.
The medicine currently used in the UK is called Levonelle One Step or Levonelle 1500. This contains a female-type hormone called levonorgestrel – one of the ingredients of several types of contraceptive pill.
• Levonorgestrel works by preventing ovaries from releasing an egg and altering the lining of the womb, so a fertilised egg cannot embed itself there. In Britain and many other countries it is regarded as an emergency contraceptive, not an abortion-causing drug, as it will not work if a woman is already pregnant.
• It is not 100 per cent effective, but the failure rate is quite low – estimated at around 10 per cent or lower if taken earlier.
• While used by a wide range of women, it has been particularly useful for rape victims or where there have been problems with contraception.
• It is available free from GPs, family planning clinics or can be bought at pharmacies for around 22. Not all pharmacies will supply levonorgestrel without a prescription.
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