Another generic birth control pill based on Yaz has been approved by the FDA, despite concerns that the pill may increase the risk of blood clots including deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, strokes and heart attacks when compared with older birth control pills.
Vestura, is manufactured by Watson Pharmaceuticals, containing ethinyl estradiol and drospirenone, a newer “fourth” generation progestin that is only found in the Yaz-family of contraceptives.
Yaz, and an older version known as Yasmin, are two of the most popular birth control pills on the market. Gianvi is a generic Yaz version and Ocella is a generic Yasmin version. Bayer also introduced Beyaz, a newer version, which is not available as a generic, which includes a folate supplement.
Drospirenone is a newer type of progestin that is usually used in combination oral contraceptives that also include estrogen. It was originally introduced by Berlex Laboratories in Yasmin. Once Berlex was acquired by Bayer Healthcare an updated version of Yasmin was introduced called Yaz.
In addition to Yaz, Yasmin and Beyaz, drospirenone is also used in the brand name birth control pill Safyral, as well as generic Yasmin equivalents sold as Ocella, Syeda and Zarah, and generic Yaz equivalents sold as Gianvi and Loryna.
An FDA advisory panel meeting is scheduled for December 8, to evaluate the safety of drospirenone and determine if regulatory actions may be necessary to protect women from a possible risk of blood clot-related injuries.
In October, the FDA released a report that determined drospirenone-based birth control pills may increase the risk of blood clots by 75% over some older birth control pills. And they also doubled the risk of heart attacks and strokes in users who were new to birth control, with some health problems appearing less than three months after women started to take the pills.
Thousands of women throughout the United States are currently filing Yaz, Yasmin, Beyaz and Ocella lawsuits against Bayer after experiencing health problems and side effects.