Antibiotic Not Found to Reduce Breakthrough Bleeding

Women on continuous-use oral contraceptives do not experience less spotting with doxycycline

FRIDAY, June 4 (HealthDay News) -- Treatment with doxycycline does not appear to decrease unscheduled bleeding associated with the initiation of continuous oral contraceptive pills, according to research published in the June issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

To estimate whether doxycycline decreases unscheduled bleeding, Bliss Kaneshiro, M.D., of the University of Hawaii in Honolulu, and colleagues randomly assigned 66 women taking an oral contraceptive to receive either doxycycline or placebo for five days at the onset of bleeding or spotting during the first 84 days of the study, and then be observed on the oral contraceptives alone in the final 28 days of the study.

The researchers found no significant differences between the 33 women in each study group in bleeding or spotting days during the 84-day treatment on doxycycline/placebo or during the 28 days of oral contraceptives alone.

"Doxycycline, administered once bleeding has started, does not decrease unscheduled bleeding or shorten episodes of unscheduled bleeding in continuous oral contraceptive pill users," the authors write.

One author has been a consultant for Bayer Healthcare and Schering Plough; another disclosed financial relationship with Wyeth Pharmaceuticals for serving on the advisory board for Lybrel, as well as other financial support from the pharmaceutical industry.

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