Drospirenone and Ethinyl Estradiol (Oral Route)

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Proper Use

Make certain your health care professional knows if you are on any special diet, such as a low-sodium or low-sugar diet.

To make using oral contraceptives as safe and reliable as possible, you should understand how and when to take them and what effects may be expected.

A paper with information for the patient will be given to you with your filled prescription, and will provide many details concerning the use of oral contraceptives. Read this paper carefully and ask your health care professional if you need additional information or explanation.

When you begin to use oral contraceptives, your body will require at least 7 days to adjust before a pregnancy will be prevented. You will need to use an additional birth control method for at least 7 days. Some doctors recommend using an additional method of birth control for the first cycle (or 3 weeks) to ensure full protection. Follow the advice of your doctor or other health care professional.

Try to take the doses no more than 24 hours apart to reduce the possibility of side effects and to prevent pregnancy. Since one of the most important factors in the proper use of oral contraceptives is taking every dose exactly on schedule, you should never let your tablet supply run out. When possible, try to keep an extra month's supply of tablets on hand and replace it monthly.

It is very important that you keep the tablets in their original container and take the tablets in the same order that they appear in the container. The containers help you keep track of which tablets to take next. Different colored tablets in the same package contain different amounts of hormones or are placebos (tablets that do not contain hormones). The effectiveness of the medicine is reduced if the tablets are taken out of order.

Dosing

The dose of this medicine will be different for different patients. Follow your doctor's orders or the directions on the label. The following information includes only the average doses of this medicine. If your dose is different, do not change it unless your doctor tells you to do so.

The amount of medicine that you take depends on the strength of the medicine. Also, the number of doses you take each day, the time allowed between doses, and the length of time you take the medicine depend on the medical problem for which you are using the medicine.

Your doctor may ask you to begin your dose on the first day of your menstrual period (called Day 1 start) or on Sunday after your period starts (called Sunday start). When you begin on a certain day it is important that you follow that schedule, even when you miss a dose. Do not change your schedule on your own. If the schedule that you have been put on is not convenient, check with your doctor about changing schedules. For Sunday start you need to use another form of birth control for the first 7 days.

For Yasmin(R) and Yaz(R), begin next and all subsequent 28-day regimens of therapy on the same day of the week as the first regimen began and follow the same schedule .

• For oral dosage form (tablets):
  • For contraception or treatment of acne:
    • Adults and teenagers (after menarche) — Yasmin(R), 1 yellow tablet by mouth every day for 21 consecutive days followed by 1 white (inert) tablet daily for 7 days per menstrual cycle
    • Adults and teenagers (after menarche)— Yaz(R), 1 pink tablet by mouth every day for 24 consecutive days followed by 1 white (inert) tablet daily for 4 days per menstrual cycle

Missed Dose

Call your doctor or pharmacist for instructions.

Storage

Store the medicine in a closed container at room temperature, away from heat, moisture, and direct light. Keep from freezing.

Ask your healthcare professional how you should dispose of any medicine you do not use.

Keep out of the reach of children.

Do not keep outdated medicine or medicine no longer needed.

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