Contraceptive Ring

The NuvaRing is a small, plastic contraceptive ring which is inserted into the vagina and left in place for a duration of three weeks. The ring releases a combination of the hormones estrogen and progestin into the body in order to prevent conception. Organon USA, the manufacturer of the birth control ring, has marketed the device as an alternative to the Ortho Evra patch, which may be linked to a number of serious and potentially deadly side effects.
However, studies have found that users of the NuvaRing may also face dangerous health risks. An article published in the New England Journal of Medicine and a study conducted by the Cleveland Clinic both concluded that women who use the NuvaRing may face double the risk of blood clots compared with birth control pills. The findings of these studies have been corroborated by additional research in Great Britain and New Zealand.
Because of this increased blood clot risk, NuvaRing users may also be at an increased risk of other serious conditions, including heart attack, stroke, deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolisms. Studies have found that NuvaRing users are twice as likely to suffer a fatal pulmonary embolism as with other types of birth control.
The reason for the increased blood clot risk observed with the NuvaRing may lie in the type of hormones used by the birth control ring. The type of progestin used in the NuvaRing and other "third generation" contraceptives has been linked to an increased risk of blood clots compared with the hormones used in older, "second generation" contraceptives.
The consumer advocacy group Public Citizen has called on the Food and Drug Administration to ban all third generation contraceptives that contain the type of hormones used in the NuvaRing. The group says that although these products may increase a woman's risk of blood clots and other serious side effects, they contain no additional contraceptive benefits.
Dozens of women who have been injured after using the NuvaRing have filed lawsuits against Organon. These lawsuits have alleged that the birth control ring caused the women to develop blood clots and other serious side effects. They also allege that Organon falsely marketed the NuvaRing as a safe alternative to the Ortho Evra patch. Legal experts believe that dozens of additional NuvaRing lawsuits could be filed by early 2008.
Although no verdicts have been reached in the NuvaRing lawsuits which have been filed so far, attorneys representing the women who filed them say that they are pleased with the effects they have already had. Organon USA has already been forced to update the warning label on the NuvaRing in order to alert women of the increased side effects risk they may face by using the device.