Return to fertility after cessation of a continuous oral contraceptive.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the return to fertility among women planning to become pregnant after the use of a continuous regimen of levonorgestrel 90 microg and ethinyl E(2) 20 microg.

DESIGN

Descriptive analysis of pregnancy outcomes after participation in a contraceptive trial.

SETTING

Multicenter trial.

SUBJECT(S): Participants in a phase 3 contraceptive trial who discontinued to become pregnant.

INTERVENTION(S): Eligible subjects were contacted at 3 and 12 months after treatment discontinuation to determine if and when they had conceived.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Kaplan-Meier analysis displaying the time until conception after oral contraceptive discontinuation.

RESULT(S): In the phase 3 trial, 34 of 2,134 subjects cited a desire for pregnancy as a reason for discontinuation. Of these, 4 were already pregnant before stopping treatment, 4 initiated other contraception, and 5 were lost to follow-up. Of the remaining 21 subjects at risk of pregnancy, the pregnancy rate was 57% at 3 months, 81% at 12 months, and 86% (18 of 21) (95% confidence interval 64% to 97%) at 13 months after discontinuation of treatment.

CONCLUSION(S): These findings suggest that a continuous oral contraceptive with levonorgestrel 90 microg and ethinyl E(2) 20 microg does not delay the return to fertility.