Abortion Pill Reversal

A Second Chance at Choice Article

Medical Abortion accounts for 50 - 60% of US abortions. The abortion pill is a two-drug regime (mifepristone and misoprostol). Mifepristone competes with the mother’s progesterone, a naturally occurring hormone that prepares her body for pregnancy. Mifepristone creates a hostile
environment for pregnancy whereby the embryo is unable to implant in the mother’s uterus, thus causing the embryo to expire due to lack of hydration and nutrition. Misoprostol, usually taken 1 to 2 days after mifepristone, induces uterine contractions that expel the embryo (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) 2020).

Risk Evaluation and Mitigation. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) manages the regimen under the Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) program (FDA 2021). REMS is a drug safety program that the FDA requires for certain medications with serious safety
concerns. Under this program pharmacies that dispense mifepristone must be certified. Mifepristone may cause heavy bleeding, abdominal pain, or fever (FDA 2016). Mifepristone must not be taken if certain conditions exist such as ectopic pregnancy or if an intrauterine device is in place (FDA 2016). The FDA strongly warns patients not to buy mifepristone, or
generics, over the internet.

Abortion Pill Reversal. The Abortion Pill Reversal (APR) protocol can reverse the effects of medical abortion. Clinical evidence shows that a regimen of progesterone, if administered within 72 hours of taking mifepristone, and before taking the misoprostol, is 64% - 68% effective in
reversing the effect of mifepristone (Delgado 2018). The Abortion Pill Reversal protocol is administered by the Abortion Pill Rescue Network (APRN), a team of over 1,000 healthcare professionals. They staff a 24/7 hotline ready to help women who regret their medical abortion
decision and want to save the life of their child. There have been thousands of documented cases of abortion pill reversal that resulted in a live birth (Heartbeat International 2022).

Progesterone Safety. Physicians have safely used progesterone to reduce the risk of premature birth and recurring miscarriage for over 50 years. They commonly prescribe progesterone for women who undergo in vitro fertilization (AAPLOG 2020). The American Society for
Reproductive Medicine indicates that there is no increased risk from using natural progesterone in early pregnancy (ASRM 2008).

Second Chance at Choice. Pro-abortion advocates are aggressively fighting against APR (Nicole 2019). They falsely claim that there is no scientific evidence to support APR. They strenuously object to laws that require physicians to inform women of the APR option. The American Association of Pro-life Obstetricians & Gynecologists strongly supports laws which require physicians to inform women of the APR option as part of a woman’s right to informed consent prior to medical abortion (AAPLOG 2019).

Hear from Medical Director of Abortion Pill Reversal, Dr. George Delgado, F.A.A.F.P., at our Virtual Speaker Series on Feb. 28.

References

ACOG. 2020. “Medication Abortion up to 70 Days of Gestation.” Accessed October 10, 2022.https://www.acog.org/en/clinical/clinical-guidance/practice-bulletin/articles/2020/10/medication-abortion-up-to-70-days-of-gestation.

AAPLOG. 2019. “2019 AAPLOG Position Statement on Abortion Pill Reversal.” Accessed October 11, 2022.
https://aaplog.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/2019-AAPLOG-Statement-on-Abortion-Pill-Reversal.pdf.

AAPLOG. 2020. “The Reversal of the Effects of Mifepristone by Progesterone, Practice Bulletin 6.”
https://aaplog.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/FINAL-PB-6-Abortion-Pill-Reversal-1.pdf.

Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. 2008. “Progesterone Supplementation during the Luteal Phase and in Early Pregnancy in the Treatment of Infertility: An Educational Bulletin.” Fertility and Sterility 89 (4): 789–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2008.02.012.

Delgado, George, Steven J. Condly, Mary Davenport, Thidarat Tinnakornsrisuphap, Jonathan Mack, Veronica Khauv, and Paul S. Zhou. 2018. “A Case Series Detailing the Successful Reversal of the Effects of Mifepristone Using Progesterone.” Issues in Law & Medicine 33 (1): 21–31. PMID: 30831017.

FDA. 2016. “MIFEPREX (mifepristone) Medication Guide.” Accessed October 10, 2022. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2016/020687s020lbl.pdf.

FDA. 2021. “Mifeprex (Mifepristone) Information.” Accessed October 10, 2022. https://www.fda.gov/drugs/postmarket-drug-safety-information-patients-and-providers/mifeprex-mifepristone- information.

Heartbeat International. 2022. “Abortion Pill Rescue Network.” Accessed October 13. https://www.heartbeatinternational.org/our-work/apr.

Nicole, Laura. 2019. “Four Lies Abortion Supporters Are Telling about Abortion Pill Reversal... and the Truth.” Live Action News. July 9. https://www.liveaction.org/news/four-lies-abortion-pill-reversal-truth/.

Additional Resources

Abortion Pill Reversal - Informational resources with a helpline to aid women in reversing the harmful effects of the abortion pill.

Heritage House - Multilingual brochures, postcards, etc. about abortion pill reversal (for sale).

Heartbeat International - Information about abortion pill reversal.

State Regulation of Abortion Pill Reversal - Informative article written by Clarke D. Forsythe and Donna Harrison M.D..