Low-Dose Pill Link to Stroke Deemed Unlikely

Contrary to several much-publicized reports, there is no real association between newer low-dose oral contraceptives and increased risk of stroke, according to an analysis of pooled data from 36 studies.

Contrary to several much-publicized reports, there is no real association between newer low-dose oral contraceptives and increased risk of stroke, according to an analysis of pooled data from 36 studies. The analysis was conducted in Canada by a multicenter team headed by Dr. Wee-Shian Chan of the University of Toronto. The researchers extracted data from 20 population studies with more than one million subjects and from 16 comparison studies looking at more than 4,000 cases of women who had suffered a stroke and a control group of nearly 11,000 unaffected women. The combined data from the population-based studies showed no increase in the odds of stroke among women who took oral contraceptives, the team reports in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Analysis of the case-control studies did show an increased risk of stroke with use of the Pill, but only for stroke caused by blood clots and not due to bleeding in the brain. Also, there was no increased likelihood of death due to stroke. “The results of this study cast doubt on a true association between low-dose oral contraceptives and stroke,” the authors conclude. Considering limitations of the original studies and small statistical differences, the investigators believe that the link between low-dose Pills and stroke risk is “tenuous at best and perhaps nonexistent.” (Source: Archives of Internal Medicine: Reuters Health News: April 2004)