Women's health

Overview

What is women’s health?

Accredo dispenses specialty medications for a variety of women’s health concerns including: pre-term birth, endometriosis and long-acting contraceptives.

Endometriosis

Endometriosis is when the lining of the uterus grows outside of the uterus. This can cause pain, difficulty becoming pregnant, bleeding or spotting between menstrual periods, and digestive problems. Endometriosis can be found on the ovaries, fallopian tubes, and outer surface of the uterus, among other places.¹

The exact cause of endometriosis is unknown. Risk factors may include abdominal surgery, family history, immune disorders, age or menstrual irregularities.

Endometriosis can be treated with medications such as birth control, an intrauterine device (IUD), or a medication called a gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist. Most medications can be taken by mouth, but there are injections available as well. Sometimes, surgery can be a treatment option.¹

Contraception

Contraception, or birth control, helps reduce the occurrence of unintended pregnancies. Correct and consistent use of birth control increases the effectiveness of the birth control. Many types of contraception exist: hormonal pills, implants, intrauterine devices (IUD’s), patches, and rings. Your health care provider can help you decide which method is right for you. Long acting agents, such as IUD’s and implants, have higher effectiveness due to easier compliance.²

IUD’s and implants provided by Accredo are shipped to the doctor’s office and then administered by a health care provider.

Preterm birth

Preterm birth is defined as a delivery of a baby before 37 weeks gestational age. A full-term pregnancy generally lasts about 40 weeks. When babies are born too early they haven’t had enough time to complete vital development of the brain, lungs, liver and other organs. The earlier the pre-term birth, the higher the rate of complications, disability and neonatal death.

More about women’s health

Endometriosis

• It is estimated that 11% of women in the United States have endometriosis.³
• Up to 30-50% of women with endometriosis may experience infertility.⁶

Contraception

• About 37% of births in the United States were unintended at the time of conception.⁴
• 62% of women ages 15-44 years old use some form of contraception.⁵

Preterm birth

• According to recent CDC data, about 17% of babies in the US are born pre-term. Risk of pre-term birth may be higher in women with prior pre-term birth, carrying multiples. Rates of pre-term birth may disproportionately affect women of different races, with African American women having rates nearly twice as high as others..⁷

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Questions regarding your women’s health therapy?

You can reach the Accredo women’s health care team, anytime, day or night, seven days a week.

24-hour Customer Service Center

800-803-2523

1 “Women's Health Frequently Asked Questions.” American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 2017, https://www.acog.org/patient-resources/faqs/gynecologic-problems/endometriosis.

2 “Birth Control Methods.” Office of Women's Health, National Institute of Health, 2017, www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/birth-control-methods. Accessed 26 February 2018.

3 “Endometriosis.” Womenshealth.gov, 20 Dec. 2017, www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/endometriosis. Accessed 26 February 2018.

4 “Health Equity.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3 Jan. 2018, www.cdc.gov/women/index.htm. Accessed 26 February 2018.

5 “Reproductive Health.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 9 Feb. 2017, www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/contraception/index.htm. Accessed 26 February 2018.

6 Macer, M.L., Taylor, H.S. (2012). Endometriosis and Infertility: A review of the pathogenesis and treatment of endometriosis-associated infertility. Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics of North America; 39(4): 535–549, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3538128/. Accessed 24 February 2020.

7 “Preterm Birth’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 30 April 2020 https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternalinfanthealth/pretermbirth.htm