| Abstract: | The safety, efficacy, and acceptability of a mifepristone-misoprostol combination for the termination of high-risk early pregnancies were documented in a study conducted at International Peace Maternity and Child Hospital in Shanghai, China, in 1993-96. The 388 study participants required pregnancy termination for reasons including scarred uterus, reproductive tract malformations, uterine fibroids, history of repeated abortions, or pregnancy during lactation. All pregnancies were under 70 days of gestation (mean, 46.7 days). Women received 150 mg of oral mifepristone followed, on the 3rd day, by 600 mcg of misoprostol. The complete abortion rate was 92.3%, the incomplete abortion rate was 6.2%, and the pregnancy rate was 1.5%. The complete abortion rate was significantly higher in women with amenorrhea of 49 days or less (95.5%) than in those with amenorrhea of 50-69 days of duration (83.3%). In 11 of the 12 cases in which heavy bleeding necessitated emergency management, the pregnancy exceeded 49 days of gestation. 92% of study participants were satisfied with this regimen. In cases of method failure, the softening and dilatation of the cervix induced by the drugs made vacuum aspiration easier and less painful. |
