Research Summary: Effectiveness and Safety of Misoprostol-Only for First-Trimester Medication Abortion: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

This resource summarizes the key findings from a systematic review and meta-analysis of available data on the effectiveness and safety of misoprostol-only for medication abortion in the first 12 weeks of gestation. This latest study updates our prior review published in 2019. It shows that most individuals had complete abortion without a procedure or medications beyond the planned misoprostol regimen. It continues to support the key conclusion from our previous study that misoprostol-only is effective and safe for early medication abortion and is a reasonable alternative if mifepristone is unavailable or inaccessible.

Journal Article (abstract) E.G. Raymond, M.A. Weaver, T. Shochet Effectiveness and Safety of Misoprostol-Only for First-Trimester Medication Abortion: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, Contraception, doi: 10.1016/j.contraception.2023.110132

Note Medication abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol has indisputable advantages over using misoprostol only and is generally recognized as more efficacious. Policymakers should advocate for greater access to mifepristone.