Bayer said it has concluded the centralized European registration procedure for its new transparent low-dose contraceptive patch based on gestodene/ethinylestradiol, paving the way for approval by all EU member states.

The small, round transdermal patch contains 2.1 mg of gestodene and 55 micrograms of ethinylestradiol and is recommended to be applied once weekly to the abdomen, buttocks or outer arm. It delivers a continuous dose of hormones over the seven-day application period before being replaced for two additional weeks.

The German drugmaker said data from clinical studies that included 4,200 worldwide show that the new patch is "an efficacious contraceptive with a good safety profile."