Mercilon
Tablets
- Over 99% effective
- Alternative combined contraceptive
- Low dose
Price Checker
£18.99
Mercilon Medical Information
Mercilon is a combined oral contraceptive pill (‘the Pill’). You take it to prevent pregnancy. .
This low-dose contraceptive contains two types of female sex hormones, oestrogen and progestogen. These hormones prevent an egg being released from your ovaries so you can’t get pregnant.
Mercilon also makes the fluid (mucus) in your cervix thicker which makes it more difficult for sperm to enter the womb. Mercilon is a 21-day pill – you take one each day for 21 days, followed by 7 days when you take no pills.
The benefits of taking the Pill include:
• it is one of the most reliable reversible methods of contraception if used correctly
• it doesn’t interrupt sex
• it usually makes your periods regular, lighter and less painful
• it may help with pre-menstrual symptoms.
Mercilon comes in strips of 21 pills, each marked with a day of the week.
Take your pill at the same time every day.
Start by taking a pill marked with the correct day of the week.
Follow the direction of the arrows on the strip. Take one pill each day, until you have finished all 21 pills.
Swallow each pill whole, with water if necessary. Do not chew the pill. Then have seven pill-free days.
After you have taken all 21 pills in the strip, you have seven days when you take no pills. So if you take the last pill of one pack on a Friday, you will take the first pill of your next pack on the Saturday of the following week. Within a few days of taking the last pill from the strip, you should have a withdrawal bleed like a period. This bleed may not have finished when it is time to start your next strip of pills.
You don’t need to use extra contraception during these seven pill-free days – as long as you have taken your pills correctly and start the next strip of pills on time. Then start your next strip.
Start taking your next strip of Mercilon after the seven pill-free days – even if you are still bleeding. Always start the new strip on time.
As long as you take Mercilon correctly, you will always start each new strip on the same day of the week.
▪ If you have (or have ever had) a blood clot in a blood vessel of your legs (deep vein thrombosis, DVT), your lungs (pulmonary embolus, PE) or other organs
▪ If you know you have a disorder affecting your blood clotting – for instance, protein C deficiency, protein S deficiency, antithrombin-III deficiency, Factor V Leiden or antiphospholipid antibodies
▪ If you need an operation or if you are off your feet for a long time
▪ If you have ever had a heart attack or stroke
▪ If you have (or have ever had) angina pectoris (a condition that causes severe chest pain and may be a first sign of a heart attack) or transient ischaemic attack (TIA – temporary stroke symptoms)
▪ If you have any of the following diseases that may increase your risk of a clot in the arteries:
- severe diabetes with blood vessel damage
- very high blood pressure
- a very high level of fat in the blood (cholesterol or triglycerides)
- a condition known as hyperhomocysteinaemia
▪ If you have (or have ever had) a type of migraine called ‘migraine with aura’
▪ If you have or have ever had breast cancer
▪ If you have ever had a severe liver disease, and you have been told by your doctor that your liver function test results are not yet back to normal
▪ If you have ever had liver tumours
▪ If you are allergic (hypersensitive) to any of the ingredients in Mercilon
• If you have hepatitis C and are taking the medicinal products containing ombitasvir / paritaprevir / ritonavir, dasabuvir,glecaprevir / pibrentasvir or sofosbuvir / velpatasvir / voxilaprevir
Common (may affect up to 1 in 10 people):
• Headache;
Putting on weight;
• Breast problems, such as painful or tender breasts;
• Depression or mood changes;
• Stomach problems, such as nausea; abdominal pain;
Uncommon (may affect up to 1 in 100 people):
• Migraine (see a doctor as soon as possible if this is your first migraine or it’s worse than usual, or if the headache is severe, unusual or long lasting);
• Fluid retention (swollen hands, ankles or feet – a sign of fluid retention);
• Decreased sexual desire;
• Vomiting;
• Diarrhoea;
• Skin problems, such as rash or hives;
• Breast enlargement;
Rare (may affect up to 1 in 1000 people)
• Changes in vaginal secretions–Irregular vaginal bleeding, Bleeding between periods should not last long;
• Breasts producing a milky fluid from the nipples;
• Hypersensitivity reactions;
• Discomfort of the eyes if you wear contact lenses;
• Erythema nodosum (bruise-like swelling to the shins);
• Erythema multiforme (this is a skin condition);
• Decreased weight;
• Increased sexual desire;
• Harmful blood clots in a vein or artery for example:
o in a leg or foot (i.e. DVT);
o in a lung (i.e. PE);
o heart attack;
o stroke;
o mini-stroke or temporary stroke-like symptoms, known as a transient ischaemic attack (TIA);
o blood clots in the liver, stomach/intestine, kidneys or eye.
See other combined contraceptive pill products