Many women may be surprised by the severity of the pain they experience due to a chemical abortion, a new study suggests.
the studypublished this week in the journal BMJ Sexual and Reproductive Health, surveyed women in the UK who took the abortion pill to end a pregnancy and asked them about the pain they were experiencing.
About half of the participants said the pain they experienced was more than they expected. The majority of participants (92%) rated their pain at least 4 out of 10 on the pain scale while over 40% of participants rated their pain as severe (8-10).
Abortion pills, also known as A Chemical or medical abortionIt involves a two-drug regimen of mifepristone and misoprostol to terminate pregnancy. The pill is the most common abortion method offered by providers in the United States, accounting for more than 60% of all abortions nationally, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
FILE – A patient prepares to take the first of two combination pills, mifepristone, for a medical abortion during a visit to a clinic in Kansas City, Kansas, on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. A law requires doctors to disclose ways to stop the medication and induced abortions will not be performed pending a court ruling. (AP Photo/Charlie Riddell, File)
Nearly 1,600 women responded to the survey, the majority of whom were between 20 and 39 years old. About half of the survey participants reported that they had never had children before.
Two-thirds of participants said they would choose the abortion pill again if needed in the future, but 13% of participants said they would choose a surgical abortion, citing the severe pain they experienced as a factor.
While some women felt the pain was no worse than menstrual cramps, other women who responded to the survey described the pain as much worse than they expected. These women said their pain level was “downplayed” or “sugar-coated” in the information their doctors gave them before taking the pill.
One participant said: “The pain was much stronger than menstrual pain, and it was like labor contractions. I have given birth three times and the pain was not much different from that pain, the pain of cramps and cramps.”
Abortion rights activists participate in the “Rally for Our Freedom” to protect the abortion rights of Florida residents, in Orlando, Florida. (Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty) (Chandan Khanna/AFP)
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The researchers concluded that patients need to have “accurate and realistic information about pain” to manage it and support “informed consent in choosing the abortion method.”
“Women want more detailed, realistic information to make choices about treatment and to prepare for medical abortion if that is their preference,” wrote Hannah McCulloh, the study's lead author. “Medical abortion is a safe and highly effective option. This evaluation has led us at BPAS to create new materials for patients and provide additional training for staff, which we are currently evaluating.”
Pro-life activist Abby JohnsonThe former Planned Parenthood director, who now helps women leave the abortion industry, said the new study revealed a truth about chemical abortion that isn't often talked about.
“It's about time a study like this was released because women are not being told the truth about what happens during a medical abortion or the true extent of the pain they may feel,” Johnson said in a press release.
A pro-life advocate holds a sign about reversing the abortion pill. (40 days for life)
“I hope they realize that they were never told the truth about medical abortion, and that the abortion industry, unfortunately, viewed their desperation as making money. That's certainly how I felt when I was given the abortion pills and sent to me,” she added: “In a happy way, only to later discover the absolute horror.” What a medical abortion looks like.”
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The abortion pill was first approved for use in the United States by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2000 and can be given within the United States. The first ten weeks of pregnancy.
In June, supreme court Ruling against a challenge to the US Food and Drug Administration's regulatory approval process for mifepristone brought by a group of pro-life doctors and medical associations.
Lower courts concluded that the federal agency did not fully consider potential health risks to women when reviewing regulations for mifepristone starting in 2016. Those revisions — last updated in 2023 — include a reduction in the recommended dose, allowing the drug to be used For up to 10 weeks of pregnancy. (from seven weeks), approving a general copy and allowing its mailing (cancellation of in-person doctor visits), among other measures.
The US Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib) (AP photo)
The Biden administration and the manufacturer of mifepristone have asked the court to overturn an appeal ruling that would cut off mail-in access to the drug and impose other restrictions, even in states where abortion remains legal.
In victory for Biden administration For abortion rights supporters, the Supreme Court preserved access to abortion pills, ruling unanimously that FDA challengers lacked standing to sue the government.
Fox News' Brianna Herlihy and Melissa Ruddy contributed to this report.
