Effects of desogestrel and gestodene in low-dose oral contraceptive combinations on lipid and lipoprotein status. A randomized prospective study.

This study was designated to assess the effects of two low-dose oral contraceptives (OC) on serum lipids and lipoproteins and to compare, at same oestrogen dose (30 micrograms), the effects of desogestrel (DG) with those of a new progestin, gestodene (GD). Fifty-four young women, matched for Quetelet's Index, age, diet, alcohol consumption, smoking and exercise habits, were randomly assigned to one of two regimens. Serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, total triglycerides (T) and cholesterol (C), apolipoprotein A-1 (Apo A) and apolipoprotein B (Apo B) were measured prior to the OC commencement and after 6-cycle treatment. Sex hormone binding globulin (SHRG) and ceruloplasmin (CP) were determined as well. LDL-C, Apo A, C, T, increased significantly from baseline values, being still the increase within the reference range. Apo B changed proportional to the LDL-C increase. A rise in HDL-C occurred but it was statistically significant in the EE-DG group only. This result would suggest that the EE-DG combination is more estrogen-dominant that the EE-GD combination. However, this hypothesis was not consistent with the increase to the similar extent for SHBG and CP, which reflect the estrogenicity/gestagenicity of the two OCs. The disproportion of change between HDL-C and Apo A in only EE-GD group might reflect some compositional change in HDL particle. There were no significant differences between the two formulations for the parameters investigated.