To prevent pregnancy, always take Microgynon 30 ED as instructed.

Your pack contains 3 foil memo strips with 3 sets of 7 self-adhesive strips showing the days of the week.

Each foil memo strip contains 28 tablets: 21 small active tablets in 3 rows and 7 larger inactive tablets in the last row.

Take Microgynon 30 ED every day for 28 days

• Find the set of self-adhesive strips. Each strip starts with a different day of the week. Peel off a strip that starts with your starting day. For instance, if you start the tablets on a Wednesday, use a strip that starts with ‘Wed’.

• Stick the strip along the top of the foil memo-strip so that the first day is above the pill marked ‘start’

• You can now see on which day you have to take each tablet.

• Take your pill at the same time every day.

• Follow the direction of the arrows on the strip. Take one pill each day, until you have finished all 28 pills.

• Swallow each pill whole, with water if necessary. Do not chew the pill

Start taking your next strip of Microgynon 30 EDthe next day. Do not leave a gap between packs. As long as you take Microgynon 30 ED correctly, you will always start each new strip on the same day of the week.

For more information on taking Microgynon 30 ED, consult the Patient Information Leaflet.

Each box of Microgynon 30 ED contains three strips of 28 tablets, and each strip of tablets has its own set of 7 self-adhesive strips showing the days of the week.

Each strip of Microgynon 30 ED contains 21 beige sugar-coated tablets containing 150 micrograms of the progestogen levonorgestrel and 30 micrograms of the oestrogen ethinylestradiol and 7 larger, white, inactive tablets.

Microgynon 30 ED also contains the inactive ingredients:

Lactose, maize starch, povidone, magnesium stearate (E572), sucrose, macrogol 6000, calcium carbonate (E170), talc, montan glycol wax , titanium dioxide (E171), gylcerin (E422), ferric oxide, pigment yellow (E172).

Before starting Microgynon 30 ED, it is particularly important to read the symptoms of a blood clot section in the the Patient Information Leaflet.  It’s important that you understand the benefits and risks of taking Microgynon before taking it or when deciding whether to carry on taking it. Although Microgynon is suitable for most healthy women, it is not suitable for all.

Do not take Microgynon 30 ED:

• If you have (or have ever had) a blood clot in a blood vessel of your legs (deep vein thrombosis, DVT), your lungs (pulmonary embolus, PE) or other organs

• If you know you have a disorder affecting your blood clotting – for instance, protein C deficiency, protein S deficiency, antithrombin-III deficiency, Factor V Leiden or antiphospholipid antibodies

• If you need an operation or if you are off your feet for a long time

• If you have ever had a heart attack or stroke

• If you have (or have ever had) angina pectoris (a condition that causes severe chest pain and may be a first sign of a heart attack) or transient ischaemic attack (TIA – temporary stroke symptoms)

• If you have any of the following diseases that may increase your risk of a clot

• in the arteries:

  • severe diabetes with blood vessel damage

  • very high blood pressure

  • a very high level of fat in the blood (cholesterol or triglycerides) a condition known as hyperhomocysteinaemia

• If you have (or have ever had) migraines or a type of migraine called ‘migraine with aura’

• If you have or have ever had breast cancer

• If you have ever had a severe liver disease, and you have been told by your doctor that your liver function test results are not yet back to normal

• If you have ever had liver tumours

• If you are allergic (hypersensitive) to any of the ingredients in Microgynon

• If you have Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis (chronic inflammatory bowel disease)

• If you have systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE – a disease affecting your natural defence system)

• If you have haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS – a disorder of blood clotting causing failure of the kidneys)

• If you have sickle cell anaemia (an inherited disease of the red blood cells)

• If you have inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis)

• If you have just given birth you are at an increased risk of blood clots

• If you have an inflammation in the veins under the skin (superficial thrombophlebitis)

• If you have varicose veins

• If you have diabetes

• If you or your close family have ever had problems with your heart, or circulation such as high blood pressure

• If you or your close family have ever had problems with blood clotting

• If you have the inherited disease called porphyria

• If you are overweight (obese)

• If you have any illness that worsened during pregnancy or previous use of the Pill

Always tell your doctor, pharmacist or dentist that you’re taking Microgynon if you ever need to take another medicine at the same time.  Some medicines can have an influence on the blood levels of Microgynon and can stop it from working properly – for example:

• some medicines used to treat epilepsy

• some medicines used to treat HIV and Hepatitis C virus infections (so-called protease inhibitors and non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors)

• griseofulvin (an anti-fungal medicine)

• certain antibiotics

• certain sedatives (called ‘barbiturates’)

• St. John’s Wort (a herbal remedy).

Microgynon 30 ED contains lactose and sucrose - f you have been told by your doctor that you have intolerance to some sugars, contact your doctor before using Microgynon 30 ED.

Do not use Microgynon 30 ED if you are pregnant. If you are breast-feeding, your doctor or family planning nurse may advise you not to take Microgynon 30 ED.  They will be able to suggest alternative contraception.