Population Council | Ebert Program | Emergency Contraception

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH PROGRAM (EBERT)
Emergency Contraception

Emergency contraception (EC) fills an important niche in the range of contraceptive options available to women and couples. Emergency contraceptive pills—using higher doses of already-approved birth control pills within 72 hours of unprotected intercourse—offer a safe, legal, but underused method of reducing unintended pregnancies in many countries. Depending on when in the cycle the pills are taken, they can prevent or delay ovulation, interfere with fertilization, or block implantation. Emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs) are not an abortifacient (substance that causes an abortion). ECPs will not work if a woman is already pregnant. This method reduces a woman’s risk of becoming pregnant by 75-85 percent; the most common side effects include nausea and vomiting.

The Population Council's Ebert Program has conducted a wide range of research on EC around the globe, including clinical trials to identify simpler regimens and to extend the time limit of use. Population Council research has also explored the impact of giving women advance supplies of EC. This research confirms that advance provision of EC does not lead women to abandon their regular contraceptive methods. Rather, it facilitates use, potentially reducing the risk of unwanted pregnancy. Recent Council research has focused on exploring new modes of service delivery, including non-prescription pharmacy and over-the-counter access to EC in both developed and developing country settings.

Council activities in this area include the following:

In Europe, the Population Council worked with colleagues in France, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden to gather information about pharmacy access to EC. In each country, women who used EC obtained in a pharmacy without a prescription were interviewed. This study demonstrated that women in these four countries found pharmacy access to EC acceptable and user-friendly. (See Bringing Emergency Contraception Over the Counter: Experiences of Nonprescription Users in France, Norway, Sweden and Portugal in Publications/Resources section, below.)

In Senegal, the Population Council is working with the Centre Régional de Recherche et Formation en Santé de la Reproduction (CEFOREP), a local research organization, to learn more about the EC experience in this country. This study demonstrates that although emergency contraception has been known among some Senegalese providers and a dedicated OTC product is available, few participants knew about this method. Respondents suggested increased media attention and educational campaigns (using both traditional and modern methods) as effective means of increasing knowledge about EC in Senegal.

In South Africa the Medicines Control Council moved all EC products to pharmacy provision in 2000, and Council researchers are currently interviewing pharmacists to evaluate their knowledge of EC, and to identify areas where pharmacists may need support or training.

Council researchers collaborated with service providers in Brazil, Nicaragua, and Honduras to evaluate methods to add ECP to the existing contraceptive mix. Other staff conducted studies on national ECP initiatives undertaken in Bangladesh and India.

The Population Council conducted research in the United States and Great Britain to learn whether the current regimen for taking ECPs can be simplified and if the time limit during which they can be taken could be expanded.

The Population Council is part of a group of international organizations concerned with issues related to EC. Council staff participate in the American Society for Emergency Contraception (ASEC) and the International Consortium for Emergency Contraception (ICEC), organizations that the Council helped to found, to share information among groups working on emergency contraception.

Publications/Resources on this issue

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This page updated
6 December 2006