The European Medicine Agency (EMA) announced Friday that it was reviewing the effectiveness of morning after pills in overweight and obese women.
The EMA issued a statement Friday that it would be judging the effectiveness of the contraceptive pills on heavier women. To be more specific, the medical supervising authority will be testing the level of levonorgestrel, which is found in many of the emergency contraceptives.
An earlier independent study showed that contraceptives containing levonorgestrel were not effective in obese women.
"This is an efficacy issue," said Monika Benstetter, an agency spokeswoman, in a press release. "We need to find out what the association is with (body mass index) and if there is a cut-off threshold for when the medicine becomes less effective."
In November, when Norlevo, the morning after pill was introduced in the market, the French manufacturer of the drug, HRA Pharma, was made to issue a label warning stating that the medicine was not wholly effective in women above 165 pounds and totally useless for women weighing more than 176 pounds.
EMA stated that it will be reviewing all the contraceptives that fall under the same category as Norlevo. However, the medical association has not specified any timeline for the review to be completed.
In November, the U.S. Food and Drug Authority also stated that they were also studying the same issue. The results are not out yet.
The morning after pills work best when taken within 72-hours of unprotected sex. An earlier study has shown that women regularly taking oral contraceptives are at higher risk of developing breast cancer.
