Clinical information
Common side effects
- nausea and vomiting
- stomach cramps and bloating
- breakthrough bleeding or spotting
- breast tenderness
- mood changes
Cautions
- smoking greatly raises cardiovascular risk — users strongly advised not to smoke
- raises risk of blood clots, heart attack and stroke
- not with history of blood clots, breast cancer, liver disease or uncontrolled hypertension
- migraine with aura may raise stroke risk
Interactions
- rifampicin, rifabutin, barbiturates, phenytoin (reduce effectiveness — use backup)
- griseofulvin and topiramate (reduce effectiveness)
- St John's wort (may reduce effectiveness)
- some penicillins and tetracyclines (may reduce levels)
- vitamin C and paracetamol (may raise hormone levels)
- atorvastatin (raises hormone levels)
Pregnancy: do not use — contraindicated in pregnancy
Reference information, not medical advice — always follow your doctor or pharmacist. Source: DailyMed, dailymed.nlm.nih.gov, Trivora (levonorgestrel and ethinyl estradiol) label, setid 70d5c3f6-c7e4-4a6b-ad4f-2d3b9240c943 (accessed 2026-08-16)