Implant and patches

Ask our experts all your questions about the different types of contraception, emergency contraception and what to do if something goes wrong.

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ELJAHA4593
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Joined: Sun Jun 16, 2013 9:47 pm
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by ELJAHA4593 on Sun Jun 16, 2013 9:52 pm

Implant and patches

A year ago I had the implant fitted but suffered with three months of daily bleeding and spotting. I went back and was given the patches (I can't take tablets) to control the bleeding which it did and the only bleeding I had was in my patch free week. After six months I went back and was told to stop the patches to see if the bleeding on the implant had calmed down. Two months on and I am still bleeding/spotting most days and it's an inconvenience and affects my day to day life and my mood. Is there any reason why I cannot be on the implant and patches together? I want to go back on the patches alongside my implant as that worked for me and my body.

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Dr Richard Ma
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Joined: Mon Jun 10, 2013 2:20 pm
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by Dr Richard Ma on Tue Jun 18, 2013 9:33 am

Re: Implant and patches

Irregular bleeding can be a common side effect from the contraceptive implant. This is due to the progestogen hormone that it contains.

Some forms of contraception containing both oestrogen and progestogens can be helpful to control the irregular bleeding, provided you have ruled out other causes eg STIs. However, these methods only offer short term solutions and are not strictly meant to be used in this way (ie they are unlicensed to be used with the implant to control the bleeding).

If you feel the irregular bleeding is a nuisance, you can change to other methods, such as the IUD ("the coil") which is hormone-free. The combined oral contraceptive pills and the contraceptive patches contain very similar hormones so I am not sure why you can use one but not the other. Perhaps the contraceptive patch on its own might suit you.

I suggest you speak to your doctor to find out about other options.
Dr Richard Ma
General Practitioner

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