Sadiqa Syed, Masood A Qureshi.
Effects of hormonal Contraception on plasma Lipid and Lipoprotein Cholesterol concentrations.
J Coll Physicians Surg Pak Jan ;12(10):593-8.
Objective: To evaluate the cardiovascular risk factors in Pakistani females, using contraceptives by determining lipid metabolites. Design: The study was carried out prospectively on 70 women aged between 20-45 years and compared with 10 age-matched controls. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center and KMC Maternity Home, PIB Colony, Karachi and the period of study was 18 months. Patients and Methods: Eighty women with low socio-economic status were selected. They were either uneducated or informally educated and were classified as controls (n=10), oral contraceptive users (OC; n=35) and injectable users (IC; n=35). Contraceptives in practice were: oral tablet Lofemenal and Nordette, and injectables Norigest and implant Norplant. Blood sampling was done in overnight fasting condition and serum total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C) were determined by enzymatic colorimetric method, whereas low density (LDL-C), very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL-C) and atherogenic index were calculated by Friedwald`s formula. Results: Lipid metabolite levels in both the groups of contraceptive users showed fluctuations. Borderline and high risk total cholesterol levels were observed in 40% and 13% oral and injectable users respectively, whereas decrease in HDL-C levels was noted in contraceptive users as compared to the controls. Serum TG, LDL-C and VLDL-C did not show significant variations among these groups. Conclusion: Oral and injectable contraceptives of second generation may result in alteration in lipid profiles, though insignificant, when used for long-term (> 3 years). However, short-term use, on the other hand, particularly in the absence of cardiovascular risk factor seems acceptable.
USER COMMENTS
Excellent Article. A must see for every physician working on hormonal Contraception.
Posted by: shariq on Jul 2004
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