Who Should Not Use Birth Control

ABSOLUTELY AVOID birth control if...

• < 6 weeks postpartum if breastfeeding

• smoker over the age of 35 (≥ 15 cigarettes per day)

• hypertension

  
  

• current or past history of VTE

  
  

• ischemic heart disease

• history of cerebrovascular accident

• complicated valvular heart disease (pulmonary hypertension, atrial fibrillation, history of subacute bacterial heart infection

  
  

• migraine headache with focal neurological symptoms

• breast cancer (current)

• diabetes with retinopathy/nephropathy/neuropathy

• severe cirrhosis

• liver tumour (adenoma or hepatoma)

CONSIDER AVOIDING BIRTH CONTROL IF...

• smoker over the age of 35 (< 15 cigarettes per day)

• adequately controlled hypertension

• currently symptomatic gallbladder disease

• mild cirrhosis

• history of combined OC-related cholestasis

• • users of medications that may interfere with birth control