Medical abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol

The present article is a review the benefits and disadvantages of medical abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol Multicentre, comparative clinical studies of medical abortion are selected from literature. Since 1987 clinical trials of mifepristone 600mg or 200 mg followed by misoprostal 600 mu g or other prostaglandins have confirmed a result of complete abortion 94-95%, incomplete abortion 3-4% and continuing pregnancy 2-3% in termination of first trimester pregnancy.. The efficacy, though less than that of vacuum aspiration, is satisfactory and acceptable. Large scale studies from Edinburgh, Shanghai confirmed the efficacy and safety of termination of pregnancies in the second trimester with 200mg mifepristone and repeated doses of Misoprostol. The main concern with the medical abortion is the prolonged bleeding after abortion, which may last for 12-14 days in average. Cases of profuse bleeding which required blood transfusion were rare. but need emergency treatment. Comparison of medical versus surgical abortion showed merits of medical abortion to be safer, less complications and more convenient. The safety of medical abortion has been evaluated: the overall frequency of infection was very low < 1%. Few cases of septic shock or serious allergic reaction were reported. Mortality was 1.1/100,000. It is concluded that medical abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol is effective and safe in termination of first and second trimester pregnancies and should be a method of choice to women requesting abortion.