Overview
- Gynecologist Katrin Schaudig reiterated the guidance on Sunday that women must continue using contraception as long as they still have menstrual bleeding because ongoing bleeding indicates circulating estrogen and the presence of eggs.
- Schaudig offered a practical rule of thumb that women under 50 can consider stopping contraception after two years without bleeding while women over 50 can consider stopping after one year without bleeding.
- Officials and clinicians warn that hormonal methods such as the pill, patch, or ring can suppress bleeding and menopausal symptoms, which can hide whether a woman has entered menopause.
- Women using hormonal contraception who want to know if they are in the menopause are advised to consult a gynecologist and may temporarily stop hormones and use condoms to observe true bleeding and symptoms.
- The coverage notes that fertility falls during the perimenopause but does not disappear and that advancing maternal age raises the risk of genetic abnormalities and pregnancy loss, so decisions should be individualized with medical advice.