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HEALTH

Deaths prompt probe into contraceptive pill

French health regulator ANSM has launched a probe into the drug Diane-35, used to treat acne and also as a contraceptive, after linking it to four deaths over the past 25 years.

Published: 28 January 2013 08:27 CET
Deaths prompt probe into contraceptive pill
Photo: Zimpenfish/Flickr

Produced by the German drugmaker Bayer, Diane-35 is authorized in 135 countries and sold in 116.

In 2012, about 315,000 women in France used the drug, ANSM said in a statement on Sunday.

Four deaths due to thrombosis – a kind of blood clot – were linked to the use of Diane-35, ANSM said, promising to release a full report on the drug and its risks next week.

Three other deaths reported by French newspaper Le Figaro on its website as connected to the drug were linked to existing health conditions, the regulator confirmed.

Diane-35, also sold as Dianette in some countries, is a hormone tablet that treats certain types of acne for women and is also used as a contraceptive.

A database of information from French doctors shows 125 cases of thrombosis related to Diane-35 or other forms of the drug since 1987, when the drug was first released onto the market.

In response, Bayer said on Sunday that the blood clot risk was "known and clearly indicated in the patient information leaflet".

Bayer added that the drug was only supposed to be prescribed for acne, and in the context of a medical consultation addressing all the precautions of use.

In France, Diane-35 is only authorized for the treatment of acne, but its hormone make-up means it could work as a contraceptive by blocking ovulation.

France announced last year that so-called third generation birth-control pills – newer pills that contain variants of the hormone progestin – will no longer be reimbursed by the social security system from March.

Earlier this month, ANSM launched a probe into the use of newer contraceptive pills on the market over fears of blood clots after a woman sued Bayer over an alleged clot caused by her pill.

One French lawyer told French media on Sunday that around 100 women had contacted him, intending to sue both Bayer and ANSM for not raising the alarm sooner.

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HEALTH

Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

Danish Minister for the Interior and Health Sophie Løhde has warned that, despite increasing activity at hospitals, it will be some time before current waiting lists are reduced.

Published: 10 May 2023 15:09 CEST
Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

The message comes as Løhde was set to meet with officials from regional health authorities on Wednesday to discuss the progress of an acute plan for the Danish health system, launched at the end of last year in an effort to reduce a backlog of waiting times which built up during the coronavirus crisis.

An agreement with regional health authorities on an “acute” spending plan to address the most serious challenges faced by the health services agreed in February, providing 2 billion kroner by the end of 2024.

READ ALSO: What exactly is wrong with the Danish health system?

The national organisation for the health authorities, Danske Regioner, said to newspaper Jyllands-Posten earlier this week that progress on clearing the waiting lists was ahead of schedule.

Some 245,300 operations were completed in the first quarter of this year, 10 percent more than in the same period in 2022 and over the agreed number.

Løhde said that the figures show measures from the acute plan are “beginning to work”.

“It’s positive but even though it suggests that the trend is going the right way, we’re far from our goal and it’s important to keep it up so that we get there,” she said.

“I certainly won’t be satisfied until waiting times are brought down,” she said.

“As long as we are in the process of doing postponed operations, we will unfortunately continue to see a further increase [in waiting times],” Løhde said.

“That’s why it’s crucial that we retain a high activity this year and in 2024,” she added.

Although the government set aside 2 billion kroner in total for the plan, the regional authorities expect the portion of that to be spent in 2023 to run out by the end of the summer. They have therefore asked for some of the 2024 spending to be brought forward.

Løhde is so far reluctant to meet that request according to Jyllands-Posten.

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