ellaOne 30mg Tablet

ellaOne contains the active ingredient ulipristal acetate which acts by modifying the activity of the natural hormone progesterone which is necessary for ovulation to occur. As a result, this medicine works by postponing ovulation. Emergency contraception is not effective in every case. Of 100 women who take this medicine approximately 2 will become pregnant.

Do not take ellaOne:

• if you are allergic (hypersensitive) to ulipristal acetate or any of the other ingredients listed in the patient information leaflet
• together with another emergency contraceptive pill that contains levonorgestrel - by taking them both together, you might make this medicine less effective
• if you are pregnant or think that you may already be pregnant
• if your period is late or you have symptoms of pregnancy (heavy breasts, morning sickness), as you may already be pregnant

Do not take ellaOne if you are pregnant or think that you may already be pregnant. If you take this medicine while you are breastfeeding a baby, do not breastfeed for one week after taking this medicine. During this time, it is recommended to use a breast pump in order to maintain milk production, but throw away your breast milk. The effect of breastfeeding your baby in the week after taking this medicine is not known.

You must tell your doctor if you are taking, have recently taken (within the last 4 weeks) or might take other medicines, in particular:

• medicines used to treat epilepsy (for example, primidone, phenobarbital, phenytoin, fosphenytoine, carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine and barbiturates)
• medicines used to treat tuberculosis (for example, rifampicin, rifabutin)
• a treatment for HIV (ritonavir, efavirenz, nevirapine)
• a medicine used to treat fungal infections (griseofulvin)
• herbal remedies containing St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum)

This medicine may make regular hormonal contraceptives, like pills and patches, temporarily less effective. If you are currently taking hormonal contraception, continue to use it as usual after taking this medicine, but be sure to use condoms every time you have sex until your next period.

• nausea, abdominal (stomach) pain or discomfort, vomiting
• painful periods, pelvic pain, breast tenderness
• headache, dizziness, mood swings
• muscle pain, back pain, tiredness

Levonelle is another available tablet form of emergency contraception. An alternative method of emergency contraception is to have an intra-uterine device (IUD) inserted by a doctor or nurse. This can be done up to five days after unprotected sex. It has the advantage of providing ongoing contraception and is also more effective than taking hormone tablets (it is almost 100% effective). You should visit your regular GP for this.