Spanish drug agency confirms grave effects of morning-after pill

Madrid, Spain, Jan 19, 2010 / 12:54 pm

The Spanish Agency for Drugs and Health Care Products, which is under the Ministry of Health, recently stated in a report that serious physical side effects result from the use of the morning-after pill, such as ectopic pregnancies and deep vein thrombosis.

According to the newspaper “La Razon,” the agency’s new research contradicts previous reports from the Ministry of Health, which claim the drug is safe for use. It argues that the pill can cause deep vein thrombosis, a condition in which a blood clot forms in a vein deep inside the body.

The new report comes almost four months after the government approved the distribution of the morning-after pill without a prescription, which made it possible for young women to obtain the drug from pharmacies. 

No regulations are in place to prevent excessive use.

The side-effects presented in the report speak for themselves.  Of the 1,379 women who took at least one dose of the drug, 426 reported bleeding (30.89%); 189 nausea (13.7%); 184 fatigue (13.34%); 183 abdominal pain (13.27%); 142 headaches (10.3%); among other complications such as breast pain, vomiting, diarrhea and dizziness.

The results of the study were published last October, seven months after the government announced it would allow the pill to be dispensed without a medical prescription. Experts questioned why the study of the pill’s side effects was not carried out before its status was changed.