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In early October, the FDA approved the oral contraceptive (OC) Yaz (3 mg drospirenone/20 mcg ethinyl estradiol) for the treatment of the emotional and physical symptoms of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) in women who choose to use an OC as their method of contraception. Unlike most OCs, which include progestins derived from testosterone, Yaz includes the progestin drospirenone, which is an analogue of spironolactone; consequently, drospirenone has a mild diuretic effect. Yaz also differs from most OC formulations in that it contains 24 (rather than 21) days of active tablets, with only 4 (instead of 7) hormone-free days within each 4-week pill pack (see Journal Watch Women’s Health Aug 31 2006). Two randomized placebo-controlled tria…