AAP Policy Statement on Emergency Contraception for Teens

The AAP recommends that teens have access to Plan B both in emergencies and in advance of need.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Committee on Adolescence reviewed the current available medications for emergency contraception and presents recommendations. Among them are the following:

Although most effective within 24 hours, emergency contraception can be used up to 120 hours after unprotected intercourse and will prevent 85% of pregnancies. Plan B (levonorgestrel, 1.5 mg) is the most effective emergency contraception and has the best side effect profile, with the lowest incidence of nausea and vomiting.
Ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel (Yuzpe method) is less effective and causes more nausea and vomiting than Plan B; it cannot be used in patients with contraindications to estrogen (e.g., thromboembolic disease).
Plan B and the…

Reviewing Author

Ron M. Walls, MD, FRCPC, FAAEM

Disclosures

Speaker's bureauAirway Management Education Center, LLC

EquityAirway Management Education Center, LLC

Grant / Research supportAgency for Health Care Research and Quality

Editorial boardsManual of Emergency Airway Management; Rosen's Emergency Medicine; UpToDate; Scientific American Medicine

Leadership positions in professional societiesAssociation of Academic Chairs in Emergency Medicine (President)