Effects of combined hormonal contraception on health and wellbeing: Women's knowledge in northern Italy

We investigated levels of knowledge of the effects of combined hormonal contraceptives (CHCs) on general/reproductive health and physical/psychosexual wellbeing. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in two university hospitals in northern Italy. Healthy current-, past- and never CHC users (n = 545; age 18-44 years) completed a self-administered questionnaire. RESULTS: Ninety-three percent of current-, 74% of past-, and 56% of never users believed they were sufficiently informed (χ(2): 67.1; p = 0.001) about the benefits and risks of CHCs. Respondents mentioned: (i) a reduced risk of ovarian (67%) and endometrial (53%) cancer; (ii) an increased risk of thrombosis (82%); (iii) an increased risk of breast cancer (45%); (iv) a decreased fertility (19%) and no influence on risk of sexually transmitted infections (48%); (v) a reduced risk of menstrual abnormalities (77%) and acne (79%); (vi) less dysmenorrhoea (83%) and more headache (56%), weight gain (74%), increased appetite (51%), leg cramps (77%), mood swings (45%), vaginal dryness (47%), and low sex drive (48%). Beliefs about diseases/conditions and symptoms were influenced by CHC use. CONCLUSIONS: CHC use is linked to good knowledge of risks and benefits. Our data suggest HCPs must be proactive in providing relevant information so that women can choose their contraception with a balanced insight of side effects.