Combined Contraceptive Pill

Take one tablet of Lucette every day, if necessary with a small amount of water. Y

ou may take the tablets with or without food, but you should take the tablets every day around the same time.

The strip contains 21 tablets. Next to each tablet is printed the day of the week that it should be taken. If, for example you start on a Wednesday, take a tablet with “WE” next to it. Follow the direction of the arrow on the strip until all 21 tablets have been taken. Then take no tablets for 7 days. In the course of these 7 tablet-free days (otherwise called a stop or gap week) bleeding should begin. This so-called “withdrawal bleeding” usually starts on the 2nd or 3rd day of the gap week. On the 8th day after the last Lucette tablet (that is, after the 7-day gap week), you should start with the following strip, whether your bleeding has stopped or not. This means that you should start every strip on the same day of the week and that the withdrawal bleed should occur on the same days each month. If you use Lucette in this manner, you are also protected against pregnancy during the 7 days when you are not taking a tablet.

No contraindication available

Common (may affect up to 1 in 10 people):

Vaginitis, including vaginal candidiasis

mood swings including depression

changes in interest in sex

nervousness

dizziness

feeling sick, being sick, abdominal pain

acne

tender breast

breast pain 

breast enlargement and discharge

painful menstruation

abnormality of cervix (change in cervical ectropion)

vaginal secretion

no or reduced bleeding

fluid retention/edema

changes in weight.

Uncommon (may affect up to 1 in 100 people):

Changes in appetite

elevated blood pressure

abdominal cramps

bloating

rash

chloasma (yellow brown patches on the skin), which may persist

excessive hair growth

hair loss

changes in serum lipid levels including hypertriglyceridemia.

Rare (may affect up to 1 in 1,000 people):

Severe allergic reaction (anaphylactic reaction with very rare cases of hives, swelling of face, tongue severe circulatory and respiratory disorders)

glucose intolerance

eye irritation when wearing contact lenses

yellowing of the skin (jaundice)

the skin condition erythema nodosum (characterized by painful reddish skin nodules)

harmful blood clots in a vein or artery for example: - in a leg or foot (i.e. DVT), - in a lung (i.e. PE), - heart attack, - stroke, - mini-stroke or temporary stroke-like symptoms, known as a transient ischaemic attack (TIA), - blood clots in the liver, stomach/intestine, kidneys or eye.

No alternatives available

No information leaflet available