Expert: Lawrence Jay Rappaport <B>M.D.</B> - 3/12/2006
Question I am 25 years old, and no children although I am pretty sure I have had one mis-carrage (although pregnancy was never confirmed, when I was 22). My last period started I believe on the 1st of March and ended on the 5th. I have also been diagnosed with Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrom, and Yasmin is the treatment.
I have been taking Yasmin for a little over a year now, and with prior forms of "the pill" I have had spotting, but never with this one. My last period was a bit lighter than normal, and now I am having light brownish spotting. I am sexually active, and Yasmin is the only birth control I am using. I have not missed a pill, but have been a little varried in the times I take it, maybe a 5 hour varriable of time per day.
I am a little concerned with the spotting, and am not sure if this is normal, or if I should try a pregnancy test. I do also believe that my mis-carrage was caused by the pill as well, because I continued to take the pill because I was still having very light periods. Then one day in the middle of the month I had excessive bleeding, I have since talked about with my doctor and she says was hemmoraging.
Can you give me any advice on this?
Answer As long as you are taking the Yasmin every day, it is highly unlikely that you are pegnant because birth control pills are 99.9% effective against pregnancy. If you had a light period, you may not have sloughed off all of your endometrium and, therefore, the brown spotting could merely have been some "old" blood coming from the uterus.If you have been diagnosed with PCOS, I would suggest that ou discuss with your doctor the possibility of taking Metformin in addition to the birth control pill. Unless you had a positive pregnancy test, there is no way to diagnose a miscrriage. The pill does not cause miscarriage. In fact, yoou can continue taking the pill once you are pregnant as long as you stop by the beginning of the xecond trimester of pregnancy. The excessive bleeding that you had iin the middle of the month was probably "ovulatory bleeding" which is common at midcycle. Spotting is not a sign of pregnancy. HOwever, if you miss your period, wait an additional seven days and take a pregnancy test and you will knkow for sure. I would continue taking the pill and ask your doctor about Metformin in the treatment of PCOS. Good Luck.
