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Abortion
Unwanted pregnancy can put a lot of stress on the physical and mental health of a woman. In
such situation, Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) or abortion can be a blessing for her. The
termination can be safely performed till the end of second trimester as per state Law. There are
two types of procedures available for Termination of Pregnancy.
● Medical Abortion: Use of medicines for termination of pregnancy upto 10 weeks or 70
days.
● Surgical Abortion: Use of surgical methods for termination of pregnancy
Abortion Pill
When to prefer medical abortion?
● If woman prefers medications over surgical procedure
● Up to 70 days of pregnancy, it is considered more effective than surgical abortion
● If woman has congenital deformity of uterus or narrowing of lower part of uterus (cervix)
● The woman can take some medicines at home also which is more convenient
Pre-abortion procedures:
Abortion can be a mentally stressful procedure, so counselling holds an important place in pre-
abortion procedures. The main objectives of this counselling are
● Help the woman to take an informed decision
● Provide knowledge about the procedure
● Remove the anxiety related to the procedure
This counselling can be performed by a nurse, doctor or even an experienced counsellor. During
counselling the woman is given pregnancy options counselling and informed consent related
counselling. A woman may have variety of reasons for opting for an abortion. The counselling
helps in taking the correct decision without any mental stress. The counselling also gives an
opportunity to prepare the woman for possible adverse effects of the medical abortion.
Your doctor will have to ascertain few things before he/she can administer the procedure. These
include following investigations.
● Ultrasonography for confirmation of pregnancy and estimation of duration of pregnancy
● Measurement of vital signs (Temperature, Pulse, Blood Pressure, Respiratory Rate, )
● Blood grouping
● Lab tests for sexually transmitted diseases
How this regimen is used (FDA regimen)?
It requires 3 days and at least 2 visits to a clinic are required for this method.
Day 1
During initial visit, history is taken and examination of the woman is done followed by pre-
abortion counselling and investigations. Once the consent is obtained and contraindications are
excluded, a tablet containing 200 mg of Mifepristone (RU-486) is given orally to the woman and
advised to re-visit on day 2-or 3
Day 2 0r 3
She is given the second tablet containing misoprostol (800 microgram) on day 2 or 3 at clinic.
Usually following consumption of second tablet, there will be bleeding from vagina and cramps
will be felt in the abdomen. This is due to contraction of uterus and expulsion of aborted
products of pregnancy. Antibiotics may also be given to prevent the infection. A pain killer
medicine can be given to alleviate the pain.
Follow up visit-
She is advised to visit on day 15 for re-examination and to ascertain that the abortion is
complete. It also gives an opportunity for a doctor to check the health status of the woman.
Just like in the earlier regimen the woman is asked for a follow up visit on the 15th day. Call us
to find out contraindications of regiment.
VIDEO OF THE PRACTICE :
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| Her Smart Choice | Planned Parenthood |
|---|---|
| Same Day Appointments Available | Usually have to wait 2 to 3 weeks for an appointment |
| Physician Available 7/24 for questions and phone consult | Difficult to reach any Staff |
| Minimal Waiting time under 1 hour | Usually takes upto 3 to 4 hours |
| We answer immediately for appointments and other questions | You need to wait 15-30 minutes to get someone on the phone. |
| Low income eligibility for Free Abortion pill done within 30 minutes | Patient have to spend more than 4 hours to determine they are eligible |
| Walk-ins Patients Welcome at all times | You need appointment to be seen |
Frequently Asked Questions:
According to guidelines by Food and Drug Administration of United States, these regimens are highly effective and should be used for termination of pregnancy of less than 70 days.
The pain associated with medical abortion is varied but one should expect some degree of mild to moderate abdominal pain depending on their pain threshold and the gestational age of the pregnancy.
The price of a medical abortion would depend on the center where the abortion is carried out, the type of abortion that is done and the gestational age of the pregnancy. So generally the price would vary.
Most insurance companies would cover a medical abortion but it is always important to check with your insurance company just to be sure.
Minors would generally require their parent’s consent, but it is also important to find out about abortion laws relevant to your state of residence.
Women who are rhesus negative would need to receive this anti-D immunoglobulin after a medical abortion to prevent miscarriages in subsequent pregnancies.
After taking the second tablet, you may feel abdominal cramps and the product of pregnancy starts coming out with blood. But there is no need to freak out. You can take a pain killer and let the pill do its work.
Consult your doctor for this matter. You may not be advised to take the bath immediately. This is to prevent water entering the exposed area and prevent infection due to it.
You can do that. But always remember that it may take 40-60 days before the pregnancy test becomes negative. So if you will do it immediately, you will get positive result.
If you are doing abortion with qualified doctors and nurses, they will always maintain their patients’ confidentiality. There is no need of worry about your information being leaked out.
It is said that medical abortion is more effective than surgical abortion in the early pregnancy. For pregnancy of less then 7 weeks old, this method will be 98% effective. After that the effectiveness will decrease, but still remains as high as 95%.
Yes. Mifepristone and methotrexate need some time for their work. Only after that the misoprostol will be effective in expulsing all the content. So you need to keep some distance between two pills.
There are Alternative regimens available, but less used. Sometimes single pills are also used. But the studies have shown them to be much less effective about 70-85% than the combination.
For mild to moderate pain, you can take Tylenol (500-1000 mg). If pain is more you may take ibuprofen (200-600 mg). In very severe cases, even codeine is prescribed.
If you have fever, nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea,Lower abdominal pain after medical abortion, you can suspect infection. You should immediately contact a doctor as this is a dangerous condition to be in.
If medical abortion fails, it can be followed by repeat medical or surgical abortion. There are not enough evidences available to show that abortion pills can cause anomaly in embryo except for methotrexate.
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