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If you realize you are pregnant early, medical abortion may be an alternative to surgical abortion. These tablets together are commonly known as the abortion pill. In a surgical abortion, the pregnancy is removed through use of suction curettage, in medical abortion, “the abortion pill” is used to terminate and expel the pregnancy. The two drugs used for early medical abortion are Mifeprex (mifepristone) and Cytotec (misoprostol). The abortion by pill has been monitored in clinical trials in the United States and France, which have proven that medical abortion has a success rate of 95% or greater for individuals ten weeks pregnant or less. Since then, Mifeprex, also known as RU486, has been successfully used by over half a million patients to terminate early pregnancy.
Mifeprex blocks progesterone, a naturally produced hormone that prepares the lining of the uterus for a fertilized egg and maintains pregnancy. By blocking progesterone, Mifeprex causes the lining of the uterus to soften and break down, then bleeding and cramps begin. Mifeprex is also used in second trimester abortions. Some possible side effects of this half of the process may include, but are not limited to, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, dizziness, and headaches.
Cytotec is a prostaglandin commonly used to protect the stomachs of people who need to take daily doses of anti-inflammatory medication. When used in the abortion pill, Cytotec causes the uterus to contract, which helps to expel the pregnancy. The side effects of Cytotec include uterine cramping and bleeding. Other possible side effects may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, dizziness, fever, and hot flashes.
In the United States, there have been several deaths attributed to sepsis, or severe infection, following medical abortion. The risk of fatality using the pregnancy abortion pill is very low, at only 1 death per 125,000 patients, which is usually due to infection. Symptoms of severe infection include, but are not limited to, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, and severe abdominal pain.
At Parkmed NYC we believe the best patient care for abortion comes from in-person care. While risks and complications from the abortion pill are low, having a local team of medical professionals supporting you is the absolute best way to ensure your health and safety.
Please use this calculator before selecting your options from the appointment form below. Note: Seeing a trained medical professional is the only way to accurately determine the length of your pregnancy and what options are available.
Mifepristone, popularly known as “the abortion pill”, offers women in the early stages pregnancy the choice of a less invasive method to terminate their pregnancy. While it is not for every patient, abortion by pill allows the patient greater privacy, as well as more personal control over the process of the patient’s abortion.
The first question many patients ask when faced with an unexpected pregnancy is, “What should I do?”
At Parkmed NYC, we can offer you an early pregnancy consultation and help you sort out your options. No matter what your final decision may be, early evaluation and support is important!
If you are between 4 and 10 weeks of pregnancy, the abortion pill procedure is an option, but not the only one.
There are excellent reasons to consider an abortion pill procedure, but it is not for everyone. Discussion with our caring and knowledgeable medical staff can help.
A urine pregnancy test and a sonogram will be done the day of your visit to verify your pregnancy and to make sure that you are a candidate for the abortion pill.
Blood work will also need to be drawn to make sure you are healthy enough for the abortion procedure. Your health is our primary concern!
We also need to know if you are an Rh-negative blood type, which would require a special medication.
Meeting with the doctor after your tests are completed can help ease your mind and answer your questions about the procedure.
Parkmed NYC’s physicians specialize in reproductive health and can discuss all your options to terminate or continue your pregnancy. This will allow you to make the most informed and comfortable decision for yourself.
The non-surgical abortion mimics the process of a naturally induced miscarriage. Some may feel that this is a more natural feeling experience.
The non-surgical abortion is non-invasive, meaning nothing is inserted through your cervix.
The abortion pill is not for everyone because it is a two to three-day process, which can be difficult with a hectic schedule.
You will have period-like bleeding for several weeks after taking the abortion pill as your uterus cleans itself out. This is usually more than what would occur with the surgical or manual aspiration abortion procedure.
Because you will be having a controlled miscarriage, you will likely have some discomfort. Patients have said it feels anywhere from heavy discomfort to extremely painful. How you feel is dependent on your body and your tolerance for cramps.
If you choose the abortion pill procedure, you will take the first medication here in the clinic with your doctor.
After 24 to 36 hours, you take the second set of pills – which we will send home with you – that will begin the miscarriage. You will want to be home for at least 12 hours after taking these pills.
Three weeks after taking the abortion pill, you will need to return to our facility for a follow-up sonogram by taking a urine test to make sure that your pregnancy has completely cleared.
The first step in the non-surgical abortion, otherwise known as the abortion by pill, is the clinic visit.
When you arrive at the facility, you will be greeted by a professional staff to answer your questions and support you through this process. You will be asked to fill out a medical history questionnaire to better inform the doctors so that they can address your unique medical questions and concerns.
Once you have been registered, we will perform some basic testing to verify your pregnancy and overall health. This includes a urine test, a blood test and a sonogram.
The doctor must make sure that you are at least five weeks into the pregnancy, so that an ectopic pregnancy can safely be ruled out by sonogram. Ectopic pregnancy is a serious medical condition where the pregnancy is developing outside of the uterus. As the pregnancy gets larger, it can rupture the fallopian tubes and cause heavy bleeding. When this occurs, the abortion pill is not effective. If the pregnancy is not seen on the sonogram, you may be given blood tests to check for Beta HCG (Human Chorionic Gonadotropin). The level of this hormone in your blood can help indicate whether you are simply too early for the abortion pill or are at risk of an ectopic pregnancy. This risk is why you cannot use the abortion pill before five weeks into a pregnancy. If you are diagnosed early with an ectopic pregnancy, it can be treated non-surgically by simply giving you an injection. For this reason, it is important you come in for an evaluation as soon as you think you are pregnant.
You must be at less than 10 weeks gestation, because beyond that point the effectiveness of the non-surgical procedure drops significantly. There are times that despite taking the pill, not all of the pregnancy tissue leaves the uterus. If this happens, you must have a surgical procedure. This only happens in about 5% of cases before 10 weeks of gestation. This is why we only occasionally provide the abortion pill in cases where a pregnancy is greater than 10 weeks.
Your clinic visit also allows the doctor the opportunity to address your emotional and psychological needs, while also ruling out any other conditions which would keep you from being a good candidate for the abortion pill. Certain medicines or medical conditions may make the abortion pill less effective or put your health at risk. Please make sure your doctor is aware of all medical conditions, especially bleeding or clotting problems, which might increase your risk during the abortion pill process.
This time also allows you to ask questions regarding how the abortion pill works and what you will experience. It gives you time to confirm your decision regarding not only your abortion, but whether you wish to have an abortion by pill or switch to the surgical procedure or aspiration procedure.
Once you and your doctor are both satisfied that you are ready, your doctor will have you take the Mifepristone tablet (the abortion pill) in the office. You must take the abortion pill in office at Parkmed NYC because of the FDA regulations regarding distribution of this medication.
This medication stops the development of the pregnancy by blocking the hormone progesterone. Mifepristone can cause dizziness, nausea, and period-like spotting, but most women do not experience these side effects.
At this time, the doctor will provide you with an envelope containing 800 mcg of a second medication, Misoprostol. This medication is for you to take at home 24 to 48 hours after you have taken the first pill.
We recommend that you find a time where you can be at home and comfortable. You will want to be near a bathroom and in a place where you can relax as much as possible. Once you are ready, you will then put the tablets of the second medication, Misoprostol (also known as Cytotec) inside your cheeks to let them dissolve.
This medication makes your uterus contract and expel the pregnancy tissue. Usually women start to have cramping and bleeding between one to four hours after taking this medication. Keep in mind that this process is different for every woman. You are encouraged to take pain medication to help moderate the cramping during this phase of the abortion pill process. Even with pain medication, you should expect to feel cramping. The medication serves to make the process less intense and more comfortable. Pain may also be reduced by resting and using heating pads or hot water bottles on your back or stomach. If the pain medication does not seem to be having any effect, please contact the facility to discuss this with the nurse or doctor.
You will eventually begin to have heavy period-like bleeding and start passing blood clots. At times these clots may be quite large. This is normal during the process, however, if you are concerned you can contact our clinic 24 hours a day with questions or concerns about your process. Do not feel alone or afraid while having the non-surgical abortion. At Parkmed NYC, we have highly trained and sensitive staff available to support you and answer your questions 24 hours a day. You are invited to call with your concerns at any time, seven days a week. We want to hear from you no matter the time or day. If you are completely soaking through more than two maxi pads for two consecutive hours, contact Parkmed NYC as soon as possible. This amount of blood is considered heavy bleeding and could be a serious hazard.
It is our practice to also prescribe you prophylactic antibiotics. You should take the first antibiotic when you start to have bleeding to help protect yourself from any possible infection, as your cervix is slightly open during this process.
The pregnancy tissue usually passes unnoticed because you are early in the pregnancy. It may appear in the form of a large blood clot or it may be recognizable as a small white form. Don’t be alarmed. This is normal, but simply seeing what you believe to be the pregnancy tissue does not mean that the procedure is 100% complete. This can only be verified at your follow-up visit. If during this process you develop a fever of over 100.4°F for more than 24 hours, or vomiting which persists for four to six hours, please contact the clinic to speak with the nurse or doctor.
Women usually have period-like bleeding after they pass the pregnancy for days or even weeks. This is normal. Again, if the bleeding becomes heavy, you should contact our clinic because we may want you to come in early for follow-up care.
This visit will include a urine test, sonogram and exam by the doctor. These tests are performed to make sure that the process is complete. The urine test verifies that your hormone levels have returned to a non-pregnant level. The sonogram allows the doctor to verify that there is no tissue or excess blood remaining in your uterus. You may still be spotting at this time but it is important to come in for this visit anyway. Once the doctor meets with you and verifies that you are no longer pregnant with no tissue remaining you can consider the abortion by pill process complete.
The abortion pill or medical abortion is available at Parkmed NYC through 10 weeks of pregnancy. Many insurances will cover some or all of the cost of the abortion pill. At Parkmed NYC, there are no “hidden fees”. We believe that every woman who chooses to have a medical abortion or abortion by pill should not face the significant expense of the cost of the abortion pill. The cost of the abortion pill for patients with an insurance deductible that has not been met and cash-paying patients is reasonable and affordable. For more information…Read more
Parkmed NYC’s board-certified team of doctors and medical professionals, assisted by highly qualified and sensitive support staff, truly believe that the patient comes first. Every member of our team understands the importance of remaining sensitive and responsive to the concerns of our patients.
At Parkmed NYC, one of the most renowned private abortion clinics in NYC, you will receive the highest quality care (NYC abortion) for all of your reproductive health needs. Our highly skilled staff is trained to assist you through a safe, comfortable visit. All of our anesthesia staff are certified in Advanced Cardiac Life Support. All of our support staff maintains certification in Basic Life Support and follows strict infection control practices.
For over quarter of a century, patients have relied on Parkmed NYC’s commitment and dedication to the highest standards of reproduction, abortion and medical care. Parkmed NYC’s patient-friendly approach is evident from the start. When a patient calls for an appointment, a multi-lingual phone counselor addresses each question and concern. At Parkmed NYC, we realize that a visit for an abortion or a surgical procedure can be a stressful experience. That is why we have created a patient-centered environment designed to reduce anxiety and make our patients comfortable as they go through their abortion procedure.
At Parkmed NYC, individual abortion counseling is available to all patients and offered by trained and sensitive professionals who have been chosen because of their effectiveness in dealing with the abortion needs of individuals of all ages with special attention given to teenagers. Post-operative abortion counseling and abortion follow-up care are also provided on-site.
Parkmed NYC is a clean and modern clinical space for ambulatory surgery located in the heart of Manhattan and New York City. We are committed to a program of constant re-evaluation, redesign, and rebuilding in order to offer our patients the most advanced medical technologies and procedures. Our facility includes emergency-equipped operating suites and comfortable recovery rooms. The Parkmed NYC on-site laboratory accurately tests for determination of pregnancy, CBC, and urine tests. We also test for the presence of sexually transmitted infections. Parkmed NYC offers patients the most advanced approved procedures, including abortions up to 27.6 weeks, non-surgical abortions (abortion pill), early abortions, tubal ligations, colposcopy and LEEP.
Parkmed NYC also has a 24-hour emergency hotline which gives patients immediate access to our medical team. Patients requiring inpatient abortion services are treated by our team of physicians at New York’s finest hospitals.
The Parkmed NYC on-site laboratory accurately tests for determination of pregnancy, CBC, and urine tests. We also test for the presence of sexually transmitted infections. Parkmed NYC offers patients the most advanced approved procedures, including abortions up to 27.6 weeks, non-surgical abortions (abortion pill), early abortions, tubal ligations, colposcopy and LEEP.
The entire staff at Parkmed NYC are highly skilled professionals working as a team, focused on the patient’s well-being. The team’s leader is our full-time board-certified Medical Director. He is supported in this role by our full-time board-certified Director of Anesthesia, helped by our supporting staff of board-certified gynecologists, anesthesiologists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurses, nursing assistants, and counselors.
Parkmed NYC surgeons are highly qualified physicians who have met the high standard of our demanding credentialing process. Our nursing staff is of the highest caliber as well, comprised of knowledgeable and experienced reproductive and abortion care clinicians who reflect the diversity of the patient population we serve.
Many of our physicians and support staff are fluent in several languages and offer patients an opportunity to receive care from individuals who understand their cultures as well as their languages. Female providers are available.