- A 30-year-old woman started bleeding from the back after using birth control
- Doctors diagnosed her with the rare intestinal condition ischemic colitis
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A “healthy” woman in Illinois started bleeding from her butt after suffering a rare and fatal complication from birth control pills.
The unnamed patient, 30, suffered from the side effect for three weeks not long after starting contraception with progesterone, also known as the ‘minipill’.
A colonoscopy revealed the rare intestinal condition ischemic colitis, which occurs when blood flow to parts of the colon is cut off.
Without that circulation, parts of the intestine can die, leading to death. The doctors who treated her said it was only the second case of its kind.
An unnamed patient, 30, suffered intestinal disorder and rectal bleeding after taking progesterone-only contraception
In this image of the patient’s colon, the researchers pointed to inflammation and tissue damage due to ischemic colitis
The woman visited the local emergency room after three weeks of worsening cramps, debilitating nausea and blood diarrhea.
She had no underlying health conditions, but was obese and had been on birth control for two months.
She was diagnosed with ischemic colitis, which is usually caused by increased blood clotting in the abdomen and intestines.
Recent research suggests that ischemic colitis is found in about 15 to 18 people per 100,000, or less than one percent of the population.
If left untreated, it can lead to gangrene (in which the intestinal tissue dies) or death.
Experts are unsure how the progesterone-only pill caused the patient’s condition.
However, the researchers noted that birth control may lead to an increased risk of blood clotting, although the exact mechanism is unclear.
“Despite the widespread use of progesterone-only contraceptives, the occurrence of IC remains unrecognized within this patient population,” the team wrote.
‘The mechanism underlying progesterone-only contraceptives causing ischemic events remains poorly understood, underscoring the need for further research and increased vigilance in patients using progesterone-only contraceptives.’
Estrogen-containing contraceptives have been shown to increase the risk of potentially life-threatening blood clots two- to sixfold.
However, there is no evidence that women’s risk of clots increases if they use progesterone-only pills – and the same goes for people with hormonal or non-hormonal IUDs.
The researchers say their case is only the second documented case of ischemic colitis associated with contraception, and the first to be demonstrated by biopsy.
The patient was instructed to stop contraception and her symptoms improved within approximately two weeks.
The case report was published last month in ACG Case Reports Journal.