Can Postinor 2 cause infertility?

Questions & Answers
Can Postinor 2 cause infertility?

Q: Dear Doctor,
I have been using Postinor 2 as a family planning method for the last two years, following a friend’s advise. I do not have children, but I am planning to have them in the near future.

Is there a possibility of complications like bareness?
I am afraid, but I cannot stop using Postinor 2 because when I take the ordinary contraceptive pill, I get serious side effects. Enid

A: Dear Enid, Postinor-2 does not cause barrenness.

However, you should only use it in emergencies and not as a regular method
of contraception. Overuse of postinor-2 can upset your menstrual cycle.

This emergency contraception is not meant to work as a regular method of contraception. Postinor-2 is supposed to be taken after unprotected sex to specifically stop pregnancy. It is estimated that postinor-2 prevents about 90% of unexpected pregnancies and so will not prevent a pregnancy in every instance.

This emergency pill works by stopping the ovaries from releasing an egg, which prevents the sperm from fertilising the egg you may have already released, or stop a fertilised egg from attaching itself to the womb lining. This emergency contraception does not work if you are already pregnant.

It can help to prevent you from getting pregnant, but you must take the fi rst tablet within 72 hours (three days) of having unprotected sex. That is when it works effectively. You need to take the second tablet 12 hours (but no more than 16 hours) after the fi rst.

Stop using it as a family planning method. Consult a doctor for long-term methods of contraception with minimal side effects and which are more effective in preventing pregnancy.