Coronavirus: women taking the pill may be at risk for blood clots

Women on birth control may have an increased risk of blood clots if they contract coronavirus, a new study warns.

COVID-19 increases the risk of blood clots for those taking oral contraceptives, according to research published Wednesday.

Birth control pills contain estrogens that can narrow the vessels. People who are pregnant or on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) face the same danger.

Prescribing anticoagulants, such as aspirin, to all three groups would offer protection, study co-author Dr. Daniel Spratt suggested.

“During this pandemic, we need additional research to determine whether women who become infected during pregnancy should receive anticoagulant therapy, or whether women taking birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy should discontinue them,” she said.

Coronavirus can cause blood clots to form, even in previously healthy people, Dr. Spratt said.

Additionally, estrogen fuels life-threatening deep vein thrombosis in some expectant mothers, and in women using the pill or HRT.

The locks usually start on the legs. They can move upward, causing a heart attack or stroke.

Oral contraceptives are known to carry a small risk of the condition, which can be exacerbated by the coronavirus, the new study in Endocrinology reports.

“If infected with Covid-19, the risk of blood clotting in these women could be even higher,” the study authors wrote.

Dr. Spratt of the Maine Medical Center in Portland said: “Research that helps us understand how the coronavirus causes blood clots can also give us new insights into how they form in other settings and how to prevent them.”

The links between blood clots and COVID-19, including the effects of estrogen therapy or pregnancy, are complicated.

Dr. Spratt said that several studies using innovative animal and tissue models will be required to shed light on them.

Birth control pills remain the most popular form of birth control in the UK and the second most popular form in the United States, despite alternatives such as injections and implants.

More than nine million American women take them at the same time, despite possible side effects ranging from depression to weight gain.

They also have up to a four-fold increase in a woman’s chance of developing a blood clot.

Most contain estrogens and a synthetic form of progesterone. These are the hormones that support pregnancy and, by mimicking the condition, prevent it.

But clotting factors also increase. For the average woman, the absolute risk of a blood clot is only one in a thousand. Coronavirus can significantly increase this.

“As more information about the effects of Covid-19 emerges, questions arise as to whether the infection aggravates blood clots and strokes associated with combination oral contraceptives and other estrogen therapies, as well as the risk associated with pregnancy. “said Dr. Spratt.

Stroke rates double from four to eight in 100,000 young women a year. Similar figures have been found for older women with HRT.

‘In pregnancy, the risk of blood clots increases four to five times. The mechanisms for these and the duration of the effect after stopping therapy remain unclear, “said Dr. Spratt.

“A common recommendation is to discontinue estrogen-containing preparations two weeks before planned activities that can cause thrombosis, such as surgery or long flights.”

He added: “Discussions between physicians, researchers, endocrinologists and hemiologists are necessary to explore possible interactions between Covid-19 and pregnancy or estrogen therapy that could guide management.”