Discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill: What is the effect of expectation-optimizing information framing? - An experimental EMA proof-of-principle single-case study

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

DRKS

Registry ID

DRKS00037739

Enrollment

Registered

2025-09-02

Start date

2025-09-11

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2026-09-14

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill

Interventions

Group 1: Quantitative, longitudinal data assessment of the discontinuation process of the contraceptive pill: Users of the contraceptive pill discontinue the contraceptive pill at baseline and discont

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

Female

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: - current use of a contraeptive pill (micro pill) - prior decision to discontinue the contraceptive pill in the near future - possession of a smartphone - informed consent for participation in the study - proficient in German

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: - immediate switch to another invasive form of contraception (e.g., intrauterine device) - participation in different studies on the contraceptive pill - not meeting inclusion criteria

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA; 2x/day) over a period of 3 months: - intensity of two individual discontinuation symptoms with the self-constructed item "How strong is the symptom [S1/ S2]?"; measured on a visual analog scale with the endpoints "not present at all" (0) and "strongly present" (100) - burden of discontinuation symptoms with the self-constructed item "How much burden do you perceive from the discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill?"; measured on a visual analog scale with the endpoints "not burdensome at all" (0) and "very burdensome" (100)	—

Measure

Time frame

Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA; 2x/day) over a period of 3 months: - intensity of two individual discontinuation symptoms with the self-constructed item "How strong is the symptom [S1/ S2]?"; measured on a visual analog scale with the endpoints "not present at all" (0) and "strongly present" (100) - burden of discontinuation symptoms with the self-constructed item "How much burden do you perceive from the discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill?"; measured on a visual analog scale with the endpoints "not burdensome at all" (0) and "very burdensome" (100)

—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA; 2x/day) over a period of 3 months: - Health-related quality of life in the domains daily life, work, freetime, self-image, relations and sexuality with an adapted version of the german translation of the WHOQOL-Bref; measured on a visual analog scale with the endpoints "very dissatisfied" (0) and "very satisfied" (100) Repeated assessment (baseline and 1, 2, 3 and 6 months after discontinuation of the contraceptive pill): - multiple discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill with an adaption of the Generic Assessment of Side Effects (GASE; Rief et al., 2009); measured on a 4-point Likert scale ("not present", "mild", "moderate", "severe") Single assessment (baseline): - multiple expected discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill with an adaption of the Generic Assessment of Side Effects (GASE; Rief et al., 2009); measured on a 4-point Likert scale ("not present", "mild", "moderate", "severe") - sociodemografic data (e.g., age, reason for intake, reason for discontinuation)	—

Measure

Time frame

Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA; 2x/day) over a period of 3 months: - Health-related quality of life in the domains daily life, work, freetime, self-image, relations and sexuality with an adapted version of the german translation of the WHOQOL-Bref; measured on a visual analog scale with the endpoints "very dissatisfied" (0) and "very satisfied" (100) Repeated assessment (baseline and 1, 2, 3 and 6 months after discontinuation of the contraceptive pill): - multiple discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill with an adaption of the Generic Assessment of Side Effects (GASE; Rief et al., 2009); measured on a 4-point Likert scale ("not present", "mild", "moderate", "severe") Single assessment (baseline): - multiple expected discontinuation symptoms of the contraceptive pill with an adaption of the Generic Assessment of Side Effects (GASE; Rief et al., 2009); measured on a 4-point Likert scale ("not present", "mild", "moderate", "severe") - sociodemografic data (e.g., age, reason for intake, reason for discontinuation)

—

Countries

Germany

Contacts

Public ContactPhiline Wienand

Philipps-Universität Marburg, Fachbereich Psychologie

philine.wienand@uni-marburg.de+49 6421 28 23340

Outcome results

None listed

Source: DRKS (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Sep 19, 2026