Judge reserves decision in test case over Pill

Judgement has been reserved in a High Court test case involving more than 100 women who claim they have been damaged by the third generation contraceptive pill.

After hearing expert evidence in the case, Mr Justice Mackay indicated he is ready to write his judgment, which will be delivered before the end of July. The judge was told by Lord Brennan QC, during the three-month action in London, that some of the women were moderately injured, some suffered "disastrous" injury resulting in lifelong incapacity and some had died as a result.

He said their case, the first of its kind under the Consumer Protection Act, said the pills they received were defective.

He said the pills carried a higher risk of venous thrombosis embolism (VTE) than the previous generation of pills and there should have been a warning to prescribers and users.

But the three manufacturers involved in the case – Organon Laboratories, Schering Healthcare and Wyeth – have argued crucial epidemiological evidence was flawed by "bias or confounding" because of factors such as the women's ages and new-user effect.