After that, they're less likely to be effective and may cause more bleeding and cramping.įor misoprostol-only abortion, it's less clear cut. The Food and Drug Administration has approved the two-drug regimen to end pregnancies up to 10 weeks gestational age, but the World Health Organization endorses it up to 12 weeks. How far along into the pregnancy does medication abortion work? While low-grade fevers and chills are an expected side effect of misoprostol and aren't life threatening, if a fever persists for more than 24 hours after taking misoprostol, it could be a sign of infection.Īlso, if a patient does not experience any bleeding or cramping, the medication may not have worked to end the pregnancy, and she might need more misoprostol or a procedure to have a complete abortion. If patients experience heavy or prolonged bleeding – spotting that persists for over 2 weeks, for example, or bleeding so heavy they soak through more than two pads an hour for over two hours – they might need a procedure to complete the abortion.Ī prolonged fever above 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit is also a reason to seek medical care. With either regimen, the reasons to seek follow up care are the same. When might a patient need to seek further medical help for a medication abortion? In the misoprostol-alone regimen, the process usually only takes 9-12 hours, but patients typically experience cramping and bleeding for longer. The misoprostol-only protocol is actually faster than the two-medication protocol, which takes about 30 hours total since patients take the second drug at least 24-hours after the first. That's why it's usually the second choice regimen. Patients using misoprostol alone, however, tend to experience more nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, and a longer duration of cramping and bleeding. Multiple organizations, like the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the World Health Organization, say the one-medication protocol is an acceptable choice, particularly when mifepristone isn't available. Patients experience bleeding and cramping, and usually pass the pregnancy within 4-6 hours after taking the misoprostol.Įven though the two-drug protocol is still preferred when possible, there's ample evidence that misoprostol alone is a very effective alternative, according to the Society of Family Planning, an abortion research organization. Patients then take misoprostol 24-48 hours later, which causes the uterus to expel the pregnancy tissue. With the two-drug regimen, patients first take mifepristone – which blocks the hormone progesterone – to end the pregnancy. "Medication abortion and miscarriage management will not go away with the loss of mifepristone, but it may look a little different." Kristyn Brandi, a New Jersey family planning specialist and spokesperson for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. "This regimen is still incredibly safe and effective," says Dr. A regimen involving both medications is also used for miscarriages.īut misoprostol alone can be used effectively for abortions – and is commonly prescribed in some countries. currently use both mifepristone and misoprostol because patients experience fewer side effects when the medications are combined. Health Judges' dueling decisions put access to a key abortion drug in jeopardy nationwide How does the single-drug protocol differ from the current standard of care which uses two drugs?
Here's what to know about how misoprostol-only abortions work, how safe they are and how patients would access them.
If this happens, doctors say they will continue to offer medication abortions without mifepristone, using only the other drug, misoprostol. Depending how legal battles play out and how the FDA responds, the effects of this ruling may apply only in certain states, or may indeed curtail mifepristone use around the country. in the near future, though the ruling is being challenged in court. The fallout of the ruling could mean that mifepristone becomes unavailable in the U.S. The drug in question, mifepristone, is used along with one other drug in most medication abortions in the U.S. On Friday, a federal judge in Texas ruled that the Food and Drug Administration didn't properly approve a drug which has been on the market for more than 20 years in the U.S. But it is also safe and effective when used alone, doctors say.
Misoprostol is typically used as part of a two-drug protocol for a medication abortion.
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