If it is used properly, the contraceptive patch is over 99% effective in stopping you from getting pregnant. This means that if 100 women use the patch according to the instructions, less than one will get pregnant in a year.
Other advantages of the patch are described below.
- It is very easy to use and does not interrupt sex.
- Unlike the combined oral contraceptive pill, you do not have to think about it every day. You only have to remember to change the patch once a week.
- The hormones from the contraceptive patch do not need to be absorbed by the stomach, so it is just as effective even if you vomit or have diarrhoea.
- Like the pill, it tends to make your periods more regular, lighter and less painful.
- It can help with premenstrual symptoms.
- It may reduce the risk of cancer of the ovaries, womb and bowel.
- It may reduce the risk of fibroids, ovarian cysts and non-cancerous breast disease.
