@article{21aeb0f5270f470b8d094fec7fa7d062,
title = "RHEUMATIC DISEASE, ABNORMAL SEROLOGY, AND ORAL CONTRACEPTIVES",
abstract = "A prospective study was undertaken concerning the development of rheumatic complaints and altered serology in a group of women using oral contraceptives (o.c.) in comparison with a similar group of women using non-hormonal means of contraception. 215 women newly registered at a family-planning centre were seen at their first visit and at approximately 2, 8, 14, and 20 months. 115 of the women were followed for an average of 16 months. 80 of these women were using o.c. and 35 (non-o.c.) were employing other methods. Blood-samples taken at all visits and examined for antinuclear antibodies, L.E. cells, rheumatoid factor, h{\ae}molytic complement level, and erythrocyte-sedimentation rate showed no evidence of altered serology in the o.c. or non-o.c. groups. None of the patients developed rheumatic complaints. The results obtained fail to demonstrate that normal women using o.c. are at a greater risk of developing rheumatic symptoms or serological changes than a similar group of non-users.",
author = "Tarzy, {Bruce J.} and Garcia, {Celso Ramon} and Wallach, {Edward E.} and Burton Zweiman and Myers, {Allen R.}",
note = "Funding Information: 80 ;jLg. or more of mestranol, and 41 (51 5 %) were using agents with 50 g. or more of ethinyl restradiol. The cestrogenic potency of this latter compound is 1-5-2 times that of mestranol.15,16 g In both studies, McKenna et al. and Kay et al.8 e reported increased frequencies of {"} positive {"} titres for R.F., using a dilution of 1/40 as the criterion for a positive result. Although 2 initially seronegative o.c. users we followed exhibited R.F. in low titres (1/40 and 1/80) after 2 months{\textquoteright} usage, these women were non- reactive throughout the remainder of the study. The meaning of low titres of R.F. in apparently normal individuals is unclear, and most clinical rheumatolo- gists suggest a minimum titre of 1/160 for a clinically significant reaction. I? Furthermore, our data suggest that single determinations of R.F. titre are of question-able value in studies of normal populations. This finding agrees with the Tecumseh study of Mikkelsen and Dodge,18 who found that only 24% of otherwise healthy individuals initially seropositive for R.F. by the latex-fixation tube dilution technique remained positive after 4 years. In conclusion, the present study does not support the hypothesis that normal women placed on the o.c. preparations utilised in this project are at a much greater risk of developing connective-tissue-related symptoms or significant serological changes than a similar group of non-users. It remains to be deter- mined whether the incidence of these findings is increased at a very low rate or after many years of o.c. usage. This study was supported in part by a grant delphia Chapter, Arthritis Foundation, U.S.A.",
year = "1972",
month = sep,
day = "9",
doi = "10.1016/S0140-6736(72)91903-4",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "300",
pages = "501--503",
journal = "The Lancet",
issn = "0140-6736",
publisher = "Elsevier Limited",
number = "7776",
}