Ovranette

What is Ovranette?

Ovranette is a ‘monophasic’ pill, which just means that every pill in a pack has the same amount of hormones in it. So long as you take it correctly, there’s less than a 1% chance that you’ll get pregnant.

Ovranette contains two hormones: a progesterone and an oestrogen (30 micrograms of ethinylestradiol and 150 micrograms of levonorgestrel).

How does Ovranette work?

Ovranette, like other combined pills, helps to prevent you from becoming pregnant in three ways.

The two hormones in Ovranette stop the ovaries from releasing an egg (ovulation) and try to stop sperm from travelling to and fertilising an egg by making the fluid in the womb thicker.

The combined pill also helps to keep the uterine wall thin, which makes it harder for a fertilised egg to latch on to it and develop. And because of this, you may get lighter or more regular periods.

What is the effectiveness rate of Ovranette?

It’s more than 99% effective if you take it as instructed. Out of 100 women taking the pill over the course of a year, only one will become pregnant.

But if you make mistakes when you use Ovranette, or if you miss pills occasionally, its effectiveness drops slightly (to approximately 91%). To avoid this, you should always try to take it at the same time every day.

Ovranette and Microgynon: what’s the difference?

Not a lot. Ovranette is a branded pill made by Pfizer. Microgynon is also a branded combined pill with the same two hormones and same dosage as Ovranette, but it’s made by Bayer.

Both pills work in the same way in the body, and there’s very little difference in price. The only real differences stem from the pills being made by different companies. The packaging won’t look the same, and the pills may look slightly different too.

How to take Ovranette pills

Ovranette comes in strips of 21 pills, with the day of the week printed alongside each one. You should take the pills according to the correct day of the week.

If you start to take Ovranette on the first day of your period, you will get immediate protection from pregnancy.

But if you start using Ovranette on any other day of your period, you must use additional contraception, such as a condom, for the first seven days, while the pill takes effect in the body.

Take one pill at the same time each day, until you have used up all 21 pills. Swallow each pill whole (with water, if you’d prefer), but don’t chew the pills.

Once you’ve used all 21 pills, take a seven-day, pill-free break.

A few days after taking the last pill from the strip, you should experience a withdrawal bleed. You may still be bleeding by the time you’re ready to start a new strip, but that’s okay. You should start your new strip whether or not you are still bleeding.

So long as you have taken your pills as instructed and taken them on time, you don’t need to use any extra contraception during the seven pill-free days.

Provided that you’ve used Ovranette correctly, you’ll always start a new strip on the same day of the week.

Before you start taking Ovranette, you should always read the instructions in the patient information leaflet that comes with your treatment.

What to do if I missed taking the pill on time?

If it’s been less than 12 hours since you missed a pill, don’t worry. Take the pill you missed as soon as you can and any pills that follow as you normally would (even if it means taking two pills in one day). Your protection from pregnancy shouldn’t be affected.

In the event that more than 12 hours have passed since you missed a pill, or you have missed more than one pill, take the pill that you missed most recently immediately. Any earlier pills that you missed should remain in the strip. Take any subsequent pills as usual, even if you have to take two pills in one day. You will need to use additional contraception, such as condoms, for the next seven days.

Then check how many pills are left in the strip (excluding the pill you missed most recently). What you do next depends on whether there are seven or fewer pills remaining in the strip.

If there are seven or more pills left in the strip, use extra contraception such as condoms for the next seven days. Once you’ve finished the strip, take the seven-day pill free break as normal before starting the next strip.

If you missed one or more pills from the first week of your strip (days one–seven) and you had sex during that week, you may be pregnant.

If there are less than seven pills remaining in the strip, use additional contraception for the following seven days. When you finish the strip, start a new strip the next day without taking a seven-day pill-free break. If you don’t get a withdrawal bleed after you’ve finished the second strip, you should take a pregnancy test before starting another strip. If you missed one or more pills during the first week of your strip (1–7 days) and you had sex during that week, you could be pregnant. Our clinician can discuss what to do next with you if you contact them.

Can I delay my period with Ovranette?

Yes, you can. But you should let us know during your consultation if you want to, as Ovranette isn’t primarily prescribed for this.

To delay your period, rather than taking a seven-day break at the end of a strip, start the next strip immediately.