OBJECTIVE:

To describe updated contraceptive recommendations for patients with liver disease, based on a literature review.

METHODOLOGY:

Bibliographic search in PubMed, LILACS and Google Scholar; between the years 1960 to December 2020, with the keywords (Mesh): "Contraception", "Liver Diseases", "Hepatitis", "Liver Cirrhosis", "Cholelithiasis", "Cholestasis", "Liver Neoplasms", "Adenoma", "Focal Nodular Hyperplasia", "Hepatolenticular Degeneration", "Liver Transplantation".

RESULTS:

127 results were obtained, 92 were excluded due to duplicity, language other than English and Spanish, lack of relevance to the topic and lack of available text. Finally, 35 articles were included with information regarding the effects of hormonal and non-hormonal contraceptives on the appearance, evolution and treatment of liver diseases, which motivated the review and analysis in order to establish recommendations for the choice of the best contraceptive method in women with specific liver diseases.

CONCLUSIONS:

Contraceptive counseling for women with liver disease is a challenge that involves balancing the risk of the contraceptive method versus a high-risk pregnancy. While sex hormones appear to have a negative effect in some liver diseases, there are safe and effective methods of contraception for women with liver disease.