World’s first digital missed contraceptive pill calculator is launched: helping 39% of women who miss their pill each month

The Lowdown - the world’s first review platform for contraception - has launched a one-of-a-kind digital missed pill calculator, aimed at removing the guesswork and minimising risk of pregnancy for contraceptive pill users, answering the age-old question: what should I do when I miss my pill?

According to a 2019 study, 39% of millennial women missed their contraceptive pill at least once a month, with 39% also reporting they do not take the pill at the same time each day, potentially missing their ‘safe window’. 21% of these users also attribute missing their pill to stress, something that has become a widespread issue during the pandemic - particularly for women.

The Lowdown has built a world-first algorithm asking users a number of questions dependent on their type and brand of combined or progestogen-only pill. Based on the user’s situation (where they are in their packet, how many they've missed, whether they've had sex, etc), they will be presented with 1 of 16 different outcomes. Each outcome is labelled CODE GREEN , CODE AMBER or CODE RED to make it obvious whether the user might be at risk of pregnancy and the urgency of any recommended actions. Try the missed pill calculator for yourself here.

Alice Pelton, Founder of The Lowdown says: “We actually couldn’t believe that the best way we have of figuring out what to do if you miss a pill is to read a complicated diagram in a patient information leaflet. It was time to innovate! This tool encapsulates everything we want to achieve at The Lowdown: digitising the archaic world of contraception, and giving women and people with vaginas the power to manage it, in their own hands”.

This calculator has been developed by The Lowdown’s medical team; Dr Fran Yarlett, Dr Melanie Davis-Hall and Dr Becky Mawson, using official guidance from the Faculty of Reproductive and Sexual Health (who write the guidelines on contraception in this country).

Dr Melanie Davis-Hall, one of The Lowdown’s Medical Directors, says: “This tool is an absolute game changer for both patients and healthcare professionals. As GPs, we spend so much time searching different guidelines, but now that we’ve brought together multiple complex sources to make one easy-to-use tool - it really will make our job much easier. Contraceptive pill users will be saved time, stress, and confusion about what to do and where to go if they have missed a pill as well”.

Since launching at the end of 2021, the tool has already been used by thousands of women, and received acclaim from medics and pharmacists who themselves find the rules around missed pills confusing. This tool is a huge timesaver and useful resource for doctors, pharmacists and healthcare professionals looking for quick, simple and effective information to help their patients.

You can try it out here: https://thelowdown.com/missed-pill

ENDS

For more information, photos, an interview with Alice or a member of The Lowdown’s medical team, please contact: eppie@thelowdown.com

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Website: https://thelowdown.com

About The Lowdown:
The Lowdown is the world’s first contraception review website, helping you to choose, access and use contraception. We’re a small team with a huge mission: to sort out the world’s contraception.
- Leave a review and learn more about your chosen method of contraception including a breakdown of ingredients, reported side effects and FAQs.
- Order your pill, patch or injection online from The Lowdown with discreet, next day delivery straight to your door.
- Book an appointment with a member of The Lowdown’s lovely team of female women’s health GPs. Either choose 20 minutes of one-to-one contraception chat all about you, or an ongoing advice service if you want more information and support.
- Not sure which method is right for you? Try The Lowdown’s handy contraception recommender and contraception comparer tools to find your match.

All information on The Lowdown website is clinically reviewed by medical professionals.