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MEDIA CENTER Emergency contraceptive pills, a hormonal treatment that can prevent pregnancy if taken within 72 hours of unprotected intercourse, have been the subject of heated debate. At issue is the method’s mechanism of action: does it prevent the meeting of egg and sperm, or does it prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus? Recent research by members of the Population Council’s International Committee for Contraception Research (ICCR) and other scientists shows that emergency contraceptive pills appear to work by interfering with ovulation, thus preventing fertilization of the egg. They do not appear to disrupt postfertilization events, such as the implantation of a fertilized egg in the uterus. Read more:
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