http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/11/16/abort...g.ap/index.html

So this is the "health crisis" related to the Morning After pill that Bush has spent the past four years searching for.

Interesting how Bush's publicly avowed agenda against this medication is not mentioned.

About 350 women die annually due to pregnancy complications. When is he going to ban pregnancy?

If I'm not mistaken we are talking about two different pills. RU-486 is commonly called "the abortion pill" because it causes a medical abortion in an established pregnancy.

The "morning after" or "plan B pill" is a combination of two hormones taken the first 72 hours after having sex. The FDA believes "Plan B" prevents pregnancies (implantation) rather than causing abortion. Plan B was approved for over the counter use by an independent advisory panel to the FDA, but was blocked due to "concerns about safety" in girls 11-15.

This represents my best understanding of the situation. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Jen

RU 486 is widely used in Europe, especially in France where it was invented....this pill is used UNDER MEDICAL SUPERVISION which is important to prevent risks associated with any sudden hormonal change! Abortion being permitted in Europe, this is considered less traumatic than other procedures, in any cases!

You are correct. This report is NOT on the morning after pill, which is essentially a double dose of birth control pills. (Check with your doctor or planned parenthood first! That is not the exact dosage). It prevents implantation---therefore no pregnancy occurs.

The report is on RU-486, a different drug that terminates pregnancy. RU-486 is very controversial and is only effective about 2/3 of the time. Part of the problem is that women are given this as a take home drug and then do not follow the proper administration procedures. The issue of improper administration/usuage confounds the real dangers of this drug.

Ha, I did mix them up! I should learn not to post in the peak of my ire.

Thanks, Jen.

How did it get FDA approval at all, then? You must admit, though that article didn't, that Bush has a definite agenda against the abortion pill.

And I don't think that it is so much motivated by concern for our health as it is for the contentment of his constituency.

I have heard of this case (I think this is the same) unfortunately. The poor kid was so afraid to speak to her parents that she went to the clinic alone, went back home, did not dare to say what happened, so her parents thought it was the flu until it was too late.

Is it the pill that should be incriminated or the fact that she had nobody to turn to during difficulties.

This pill has been used for years now in France. Everybody knows that it is safe, but that you should call your doctor in case of problems. She did not dare doing that because of her parents or tell a doctor.

It actually languished for some time, mired in politics, before approval was begrudgingly granted. This drug had to pass higher hurdles of patient exposure than most and has a relatively decent safety profile considering the circumstances of it's use and the high dose of adjunct therapy (misoprostol).

Many of the serious adverse events reported with the combination occurred in women who had additional risks (i.e., smoking). While the risks associated with it's use have been overblown by the moral majority, I wouldn't be so dismissive with an "everybody knows it's safe" quip - women who use this method of abortion should not be alone for the first few days after use and whoever is with them needs to be a responsible adult, know what is going on, what the patient needs to avoid (e.g. aspirin) & what signs and symptoms to look for.

As for the references to safety in ectopic pregnancy, people need to consider the dangers inherent in ectopic pregnancy in and of itself. Reputable healthcare providers do exams and ultrasounds to ensure they can see an embryo in the uterus that is at least 7 weeks in gestation. If your HCG is indicative of pregnancy and they don't see/feel what they expect to see, they'll start working you up to rule out ectopic pregnancy or molar pregnancy, etc.