No NuvaRing Recall Despite Substantial Risk for Pulmonary Embolism & Other Side Effects

Merck, the manufacturer of NuvaRing, has given caution to women that desogestrel potentially introduces a greater risk of blood clotting than alternate types of progestins used in competing forms of birth control.  The complaint seems to be supported by a 2011 study released by the Food and Drug Administration. It proved that the likelihood for development of venous thromboembolism is increased by 56% for desogestrel than contraceptives of second-generation quality.

Deep vein thrombosis is a condition where blood clots that are abnormal materialize in the deep venous structures contained in the legs. Dangerous in itself, the condition may pave the way for the more serious pulmonary embolism.

What is a Pulmonary Embolism?

When there is a blockage in a pulmonary artery, it is called a pulmonary embolism. It is the job of these blood vessels to that carry blood which is poor in oxygen to the lungs from the heart’s right side. Several factors may be to blame for such blockages, including fat fragments, air bubbles, and possibly amniotic fluid released during birth. Common reasons for a pulmonary embolism are blood clots.

It is a rarity for thrombi to develop within pulmonary vessels. They usually form elsewhere, and then arrive in the arteries. They normally originate in the leg’s deep veins. They eventually cause a pulmonary embolism from this location.

After formation of the clot in one vein of the leg, there is a chance it will liberate itself from the wall. If this does happen, it becomes embolus, or a mass that is carried along via the bloodstream. The leg’s deep veins are connected to the inferior vena cava. This vein is large, and is responsible for transporting blood from the lower body to the heart’s right side. Blood clots that liberate themselves from the veins of the legs may often move into the inferior vena cava.

Emboli that exist within the inferior vena cava are transported to the heart with the blood. The heart’s right side transports blood of poor oxygen to the pulmonary arteries and a large enough blood clot that travels into one of these vessels may create a blockage, which will then set off a pulmonary embolism.