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Complications of abortion performed under local anesthesia

1998; Elsevier BV; Volume: 81; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s0301-2115(98)00147-x

1872-7654

Patrick Thonneau, Beatrice Fougeyrollas, B. Ducot, Dominique Boubilley, Jouda Dif, M. Lalande, Catherine Soulat,

Medical History and Innovations

To assess the incidence of complications of abortion performed under local anesthesia.Prospective study.A family planning center in the Paris area.Eight hundred and fifty-eight women admitted for abortion under local anesthesia.Incidence of immediate (the day of vacuum aspiration) and delayed complications (at the follow-up visit 2 weeks after the procedure).Among the 858 women who underwent vacuum aspiration, 683 (80%) attended the follow-up visit 2 weeks after the procedure. Fifty-nine percent of the 858 women had not had a previous abortion, 25% had had one, and 16% had had two or more. The average duration of amenorrhea was 8.6 weeks (19% at 6 or 7 weeks, 67% between 8 and 10 weeks, and 14% after 10 weeks). The overall complication rate was 3.4% (23/683) (95% CI=2.0-4.8%). The incidence of immediate complications was 1.7% (15/858) (0.8-2.6%) and that of delayed complications 1.2% (8/683) (0.4-2.0%).This study confirms the safety and efficacy of abortion by vacuum aspiration under local anesthesia.A prospective study was conducted in the largest family planning (FP) center in the Paris area, France, to evaluate safety and the incidence of complications in first-trimester abortions (vacuum aspiration technique) performed under local anesthesia. From January 1 to December 31, 1994, 858 women who underwent vacuum aspiration under local anesthesia in the FP center of Colombes Hospital were studied. Of these, 683 attended the follow-up visit 2 weeks after the procedure. The study was not based on sociodemographic characteristics, but rather on the general population requesting abortion under local anesthesia. Results showed that the average duration of amenorrhea was 8.6 weeks. The overall complication rate of abortion using local anesthesia was 3.4%, whereas incidences of immediate complications were 1.7% and 1.2% for delayed complications. The most frequent immediate complication was incomplete abortion. No differences in complication rates were found according to the attending physicians. Neither immediate nor delayed complication rates were associated with the patient's sociodemographic characteristics. Therefore, the results of this study indicate that the risk associated with abortion under local anesthesia was acceptable, and that the incidence of complications was similar to those for other techniques (abortion under general anesthesia and drug-induced abortion). It confirms the efficacy and safety of abortion by vacuum aspiration under local anesthesia.