Loestrin 30 126 Tablets

Always take Loestrin 30 as your doctor instructs you.

• Take this medicine by mouth.

• Do not crush or chew your tablets, swallow the tablets whole with water.

• Take one Loestrin 30 pill at about the same time per day for 21 days (the packet of tablets is marked with the day of the week - if you are not sure whether you have taken your tablet, look at the day on the pack to see).

• Once you have taken all 21 tablets, stop taking Loestrin 30 for 7 days.

• A couple of days after you have taken the last Loestrin tablet, you will have had your period.

• Providing you have taken Loestrin tablets correctly, you do not need to use any additional contraceptive protection during this 7-day break.

• Start your next pack on the same day of the week that you started your previous pack, whether or not you are still bleeding.

Consult your Patient Information Leaflet for more details about taking Loestrin 30.

The active substances in a Loestrin contraceptive pill are norethisterone acetate 1.5mg and ethinylestradiol 0.03mg.

Other ingredients: sugar (sucrose), lactose, maize starch, talc, powdered acacia, magnesium stearate and the colourings quinoline yellow (E104) and patent blue V (E131).

The Loestrin tablet coating contains hypromellose 15, hydroxypropylcellulose, carnauba wax and the colourings quinoline yellow (E104), sunset yellow FCF (E110), indigo carmine (E132), brilliant blue FCF (E133) and titanium dioxide (E171).

For additional information about the possible risks and side effects of taking Loestrin 30 contraceptive tablets, consult your Patient Information Leaflet for more details.

Do not take Loestrin 30 pill if:

• You are allergic (hypersensitive) to norethisterone acetate, ethinylestradiol or any of the other ingredients of Loestrin 30.

• You are pregnant, believe that you could be pregnant or are trying to become pregnant.

• You are currently breastfeeding.

• You are overweight.

• You have ever had breast cancer or cancer of the lining of the womb.

• You, or any member of your family, have ever had blood clots (including heart attack or stroke).

• You have experienced bleeding from your vagina due to an unknown cause.

• You have ever had a problem with clotting of your blood or high levels of fat or cholesterol in your blood.

• You have ‘sickle cell anaemia’ - concerns with your red blood cells.

• You have ever had high blood pressure (hypertension) or other problems of the heart and blood vessels.

• You suffer from severe headaches (migraine) or have ever had a small stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA).

• You have experienced any of the following problems during a pregnancy:

  • Jaundice - a yellowing of the skin and the whites of your eyes.

  • Itching of the whole body (pruritus of pregnancy).

  • Chorea - a nerve problem which causes jerky movements of the muscles.

  • Pemphigoid gestationis - a blister-like rash.

  • Your deafness getting worse (otosclerosis).

• You have ever had a yellowing of the skin and the whites of your eyes (jaundice) while taking an oral contraceptive in the past.

• You have liver problems including:

  • A type of jaundice (Dubin-Johnson or Rotor syndromes).

  • Swelling of the liver (hepatitis).

  • High levels of blood fats, such as cholesterol or triglycerides porphyria, liver tumour or gallstones.

• You have ever had depression.

• You have diabetes.

• You have asthma.

• You have kidney problems.

• You have epilepsy or any other problem that can cause fits and convulsions.

• You have fibroids of the womb.

• You have a form of deafness called ‘otosclerosis’.

• You have a muscle problem caused by lower than normal levels of the mineral calcium in the blood (tetany).

Do not take  Loestrin contraceptive pill if any of the above apply to you. If any of the above applies to you, you should talk to your doctor or pharmacist before taking Loestrin 30.

The ingredients in Loestrin 30 may affect the way that some other medicines work. Inform your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking or have recently taken any other medicines. Other medicines also include those that are obtained without a prescription, including herbal medicines.

Do not take the herbal medicine St. John’s Wort while taking Loestrin 30 contraceptive pill. Tell your doctor if you are taking any of the following medicines below:

• Ciclosporin

• Paracetamol

• Prednisolone

• Theophylline

• Medicines for epilepsy such as carbamazepine, phenobarbital, phenytoin or primidone

• Medicines for infections such as ampicillin, griseofulvin or rifampicin.

• Atorvastatin for high cholesterol

• Paracetamol

• Vitamin C preparations.