Trigoa Pill Recall: What Women Need To Know Now
Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.
More posts by Christiane Fux All content is checked by medical journalists.The pharmaceutical company Pfizer has recalled several batches of the Trigoa pill. If the labeling is incorrect, the user is at risk of unwanted pregnancy. How high is this risk actually and how should women behave who have already started the pill cycle?
Alternating dosage of active ingredients during the cycle
Unlike many common preparations, Trigoa is one of the so-called three-phase pills. With them, the composition and dosage of the active ingredients change in the course of the intake cycle and thus corresponds more to the natural cycle of women. The amount of the artificial hormones estrogen (ethinylestradiol) and gestagen (levonorgestrel) that are contained in the coated tablets vary.
Incorrect labeling, incorrect intake
Taking the right pills on the right day is critical to the safety of such supplements. Which pill has to be taken and when is marked accordingly on the blisters of the packs.
But this is precisely where errors occurred in some of the recently sold Trigoa packs. Batches X34106, X51153 and W98332 are affected. These markings are printed on the outside of the packaging.
How big is the risk of getting pregnant unintentionally?
But how great is the risk of pregnancy due to incorrect consumption? Dr. Christian Albring, President of the Professional Association of Gynecologists and resident gynecologist in Hanover: "The hormones contained in Trigoa are dosed at a high enough level at all times to prevent ovulation."
However, this only applies if the pills were taken at around the same time of day - both Pfizer and Albring emphasize this. But women often do not take the pill quite that regularly. For example, if you sleep longer on the weekend, a few more hours can easily pass. What is not a problem with normal dosage may no longer be sufficient at the lower level of the dosage.
Immediately discontinue and take an alternative pill
In any case, there are scientific studies on the effectiveness of Trigoa only in the correct dosage order. When asked by, Pfizer therefore recommends women who have already started taking "the immediate stop of the current Trigoa cycle - regardless of how many coated tablets the user has already taken."
The women should then use another contraceptive method without pausing. Trigoa itself is not available for this, it is currently not being delivered. Simply going to the pharmacy and exchanging the medication is therefore not possible. To get another hormonal contraceptive, women need a new prescription beforehand.
The company also advises using a barrier method of contraception, such as a condom, for the first seven days of the new cycle. The best way to proceed in an individual case should be decided by the women in consultation with their doctor.
Refund unexplained
Pfizer asks affected women to return the respective pack via a pharmacy. The manufacturer then wants to settle the reimbursements directly with the pharmacies. Whether and how this is passed on to the women concerned is the decision of the individual pharmacist.
"We are aware that this is time-consuming for the users and we apologize for the inconvenience in this context," explains Susanne Straetmans, Pfizer's press spokeswoman in Germany to
It remains unclear how many defective packs were actually given to users. Pfizer speaks of a small number.
