Women's attitudes to withdrawal bleeding and their knowledge and beliefs about the oral contraceptive pill.

One hundred and fifty-eight attenders at general practices and family-planning clinics, and 20 young female doctors volunteered to complete a questionnaire about how women take the oral contraceptive pill, their knowledge of the Pill and their attitudes to withdrawal bleeding. Forty-three per cent of female patients has used the Pill to alter the time of withdrawal bleeding. Twenty-two per cent of female patients had taken the Pill daily for more than six weeks on at least one occasion and all reported positive experiences. However, 83% of female patients believed that it was necessary to bleed monthly when taking the Pill and 69% of the female patients believed that continuous use of active medication is undesirable. The over-all knowledge of the Pill was poor and 43% of female patients did not know what to do if they missed two consecutive Pills. Female doctors were better informed but had similar attitudes about the Pill to those of other women. Forty-six per cent of the female patients and 55% of young female doctors would chose to bleed at intervals of three months or greater if they could determine their own Pill regimen.