There are millions of unplanned, and often unwanted, pregnancies every year despite the availability of highly effective methods of Contraception or due to Contraception failure.
Unplanned pregnancy can occur with all age groups.
Although effective Contraception is readily available, there are times when a safe and emergency method for birth control is required, especially in situations when a condom breaks or a woman forgets to take her birth control pills or if a diaphragm or cervical cap slips out of place during intercourse and after a sexual assault.
When contraceptive methods fail or don’t get used, there is still hope. |  |
Emergency Contraception (EC), as the name suggests, is a method of birth control that you can use to keep from getting pregnant if you have unprotected intercourse.These are also known as the ‘morning after pill’, or ‘post-coital contraception’; but the term `emergency contraception’ is most suitable as this method is to be used by women within a few hours to a few days of unprotected intercourse and not just the next morning.
Besides, EC also conveys that the method is for one-time use for a contraceptive accident, and not as an ongoing method, following every act of sexual intercourse and are usually effective if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sexual intercourse. There are a number of emergency Contraception methods available which is discussed in the Types of Emergency Contraceptives. Furthermore, although effective, none of these methods is as effective as the regular use of birth control, such as oral contraceptives and condoms, so EC should not be used as a routine contraceptive method. In fact, daily use of the birth control pill prevents 97-99% of pregnancies, while the emergency method prevents about 75% of pregnancies. Thus, as the name implies, emergency Contraception is for ‘emergency’ use only. EC uses Progestin Hormone found in some birth control pills to prevent either fertilization or the implantation of a fertilized egg in the uterine lining.
Things to keep in mind: - Emergency contarecption is not a form of abortion, but is the ability to prevent Ovulation and fertilization.
- EC is effective in the first 72 hours of unprotected sex.
- EC does not work if a woman is already pregnant.
- Depending on the method used, emergency Contraception can reduce a woman’s risk of becoming pregnant from a single act of intercourse up to 99 percent.
- EC is a right and a need to those who are forcibly displaced by conflict.
- Emergency Contraception makes it much less likely you will get pregnant. But emergency contraceptives are not as effective as birth control that's used before or during sex, like the pill or condoms.
- Do not use emergency Contraception as your only protection against pregnancy if you are sexually active or planning to be.
- It is essential to increase providers’ and displaced persons’ knowledge about emergency Contraception and to ensure that emergency Contraception is readily accessible.
- EC does not protect against sexually transmitted infections, like HIV (only condoms do).
Adapted from: Emergency Contraception and Brief Update on Regular Contraception. Guide Book for Health-Care Providers, authored by Dr. Suneeta Mittal, Director-in-Charge WHO-CCR in Human Reproduction, AIIMS. 2003. |
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