RU-486
The Abortion Pill
As Presented By: Fariah Siddiqui
What Is RU-486?
The Basics:
•
RU-486 is also known by a variety of different names including:
 Mifepristone (generic name)
 Mifegyne (marketing name in Europe)
 Mifeprex (marketing name in the US)
 The “Early Option” pill (euphemized name)
•
Essentially, RU-486 is an alternative chemical abortion method that terminates
pregnancy in women up to nine weeks pregnant.
• Not to be confused with Birth Control pills, RU-486 is not a contraceptive,
because it is obviously taken after the knowledge of a pregnancy, not a
way of avoiding it.
Origins
•
1980: Created by Dr. Etienne-Emile Baulieu from the Roussel Uclaf
pharmaceutical company (the “RU” part of the name).
•
1983: The drugs were tested in various medical clinics across Europe for
almost 15 years and eventually, the FDA gave permission for initial US clinical
testing.
•
1988: Public distribution of RU-486 took place in France, but because of antiabortion protestors and death threats, the government took it off of the
market after just 2 days.
•
1993: In the US, Bill Clinton lifted the ban (instated by President Bush Sr.) on
the personal use of RU-486, allowing full distribution and manufacturing rights
for all antiprogestins as birth control.
•
1996: The FDA issued an approval acknowledging the safety and efficiency of
the drug.
1999: Most European countries had approved the full public use of RU-486
with over 620,000 women using mifepristone as an early option.
•
September 28, 2000: The FDA approved the pill for final distribution and it
became first available in December 2000.
•
Currently: RU-486 is distributed by Danco Laboratories under the name
Mifeprex in the United States.
http://www.prolifelouisiana.org/uploads/images/ru486.jpg
•
http://www.democrats.org.au/images/campaigns/reproductiverights/RU486vViagra.gif
Hormone Involvement
blocks the effective action of the
hormone progesterone and therefore
halts the further development of the
embryo.
 During early pregnancy, progesterone
is vital to nourish the embryo and
suppress uterus contractions that
might dislodge to growing embryo.
 In a sense, the embryo is starved and
is shaken off the lining of the uterus
and dispensed from the body along
with the uterus lining.
http://8e.devbio.com/images/ch19/11.HMEM.01.thumb.jpg
 Mifeprex is an artificial steroid that
http://www.peek-a-boo-pregnancy.com/images/5-week-embryo.jpg
The State of the Embryo
•
It is around the 5th week of pregnancy
that a woman might realize that she’s
pregnant because of the menstrual
cycle, so that’s the earliest that
Mifeprex can be used.
•
Around the 5th week of pregnancy, the
embryo is approximately 2 mm. long.
•
Despite the miniscule body, the
nervous system of the baby has
already begun to grow considerably,
with its heart beating by the 4th week.
•
The 9th week of pregnancy is the outer extreme of the effectiveness of
Mifeprex and by this time, the child is about an inch long with even more
distinguished body parts.
•
After the 10th week, abortion is considered illegal unless the mother’s life is at
risk.
http://bellsouthpwp.net/m/a/maryb683/marybrown/graphics/6-7wkfetus.jpg
http://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/wwwhuman/Stages/Images/Cst800.jpg
The 7th week is usually the ideal point to use Mifeprex, and the child would
ideally have developed distinguishable arms and legs by this point.
http://www.c2g.ca/images/6weeks.jpg
•
① At the clinic, a medical history is
taken and a clinical exam and lab
tests are performed. If eligible for
medical abortion, the woman
swallows the mifepristone pill.
① Two days later, during a second visit
to the doctor's office, prostaglandin
is given. As the drug begins to take
effect, the woman experiences
painful uterine contractions which
begins to expel the baby.
② After approximately 2 weeks, it is
vital for the woman to return the
clinician and confirm her abortion.
http://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/abortion/images/ru_486.gif
The Procedure
Side Effects
•
In most reported cases, minor bleeding occurs during the abortion but in a
specific trial, a woman lost between one-half to two thirds of her blood
volume.
•
Since most of the abortion takes place within the privacy of your own home,
immediate medical assistance and a doctor’s surveillance is not available.
•
Nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, and painful cramping are the most common side
effects and can be severe enough to cause hospitalization.
•
In the case of RU-486, psychological damage and guilt is the most reoccurring
side effect of abortion.
•
Women who had aborted through RU-486 remain emotionally scarred
because they actually see the tiny child after its been dispensed (floating in
the shower, toilet, etc.) because by the 9th week, fists and other body parts
have already developed.
Ethical Dilemma
• The major issue: Is abortion the equivalent of
murder? Is it ever justified? And should women
have such readily available pills like Mifeprex to
perform an abortion at their convenience?
http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/time/3673-1.jpg
• Because both Pro-Life and Pro-Choice activists
are equally headstrong about their beliefs, there
is always a constant stalemate on abortion laws
in the US.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_gcA0ZuKGkI8/SnZLncU9lUI/AAAAAAAAC70/SE-azDyGjTY/s400/Bloggerjohn_RU486.jpg
• The issue of abortion is considered one of the
most passionately debated subjects in the
United States since slavery.
•
A considerably safer and more efficient way to
have abortions.
•
The woman simply takes a pill and can miscarry
in the comfort and privacy of their own home
with more control over their abortion.
•
By making abortion illegal, many argue that the
government technically has control over a
woman’s body and takes away personal
freedom.
•
A fetus is not a technical human being.
Abortion is terminating a pregnancy, not a
baby.
•
If medical treatments like RU-486 are banned,
women turn towards illegal, underground
clinics out of desperation and usually put
themselves at risk of death or sterilization.
http://lmno4p.org/images/cartoons/mcginnis/ru486.jpg
Pro
•
48% of pregnancies among American
women are unintentional. Should they bring
an unwanted child into an abusive and
damaging family?
•
If medical treatments like RU-486 are
banned, women turn towards illegal,
underground clinics out of desperation and
usually put themselves at risk of death or
sterilization.
•
In cases on incest and rape, abortion should
be an acceptable choice for the victim.
•
In third world countries, the rising birth rate
is a major issue, so with the help of abortion
pills, overpopulation can be halted.
www.thoughttheater.com/ProLifeProChoice.jpg
Anti-Abortionists main subject of debate is
based on religious beliefs. The US separates
church and state, so should religion even be
a factor?
progressivepuppy.com
•
Con
•
Although its not “surgically” done, using the
RU-486 pill is the equivalent of having an
abortion.
•
Medical termination is acceptable up to the
49th day of pregnancy (up to 63 days in many
European countries).
In all cases, the unborn fetus dies, but in many
cases, the mother is in danger of fatal medical
conditions (i.e. bleeding to death) due to the
miscarriage and lack of medical personal.
•
Aside from temporary physical damage, the
emotional and moral feelings of guilt is a
lasting effect.
•
Makes having an abortion an everyday
occurrence, and therefore lessens the value of
life.
Should a fetus with a heartbeat be considered
any less of a living thing than the mother? In
the case of saving the mother’s life, wouldn’t
aborting a fetus be terminating something
that had the POTENTIAL to live?
•
Abortion is not an alternative means of
contraception. 19 – 25% of women who
received abortions have already had one or
more previous abortions.
www.preciouslife.com/saimages/34.png
•
•
When is the termination of a
fetus considered murder?
Perspective On the Situation
So the issue remains…Is the use of RU-486 strictly a moral choice?
Should others have any business to decide the outcome of your body?
Although abortion is technically against doctors’ Hippocratic Oath, abortion should be
made legal only in specific circumstances. In most European countries, abortion is
legal only under situations of incest, rape, or if the mother’s health is in danger.
In the United States, people strive too much towards each extreme: completely prolife or completely pro-choice. Rather than having over passionate ideals, issues such as
abortion should be taken in a logical approach.
By no means should the use of abortion pills be a backup plan for irresponsible
people, but under the supervision and consent of a doctor and the confirmation that
the child is indeed a product of incest/rape, the use of Mifeprex should be legal and
women should have the choice.
 A woman's right to choose abortion is
a "fundamental right" recognized by the
US Supreme Court in the Jan. 22, 1973
case, Roe v. Wade.
 32 states currently enforce parental
consent or notification laws for minors
seeking an abortion.
 The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of
2003 prohibits abortion during late
stages of pregnancy.
http://media.photobucket.com/image/ru%20486/jamesmichael7/RU486cartoon.jpg
The Legality of the Issue
Things To Consider
 Should the use of abortion pills be legal?
 Is the termination of a fetus considered murder?
 Should abortion pills like RU-486 be readily available for the general
population to use?
 Does the government (or random protestors) have any right to
intervene in the ultimate fate of your life, your decisions and your
child and then judge you for your personal choices?
What’s your take on the situation?
Bibliography
• ttp://www.balancedpolitics.org/abortion.htm
• http://www.choicematters.org/articles/legal-abortion-arguments-procon/
• http://womensissues.about.com/od/reproductiverights/a/AbortionArg
umen.htm
• http://abortion.procon.org/
• http://www.nrlc.org/RU486/ru486info.html#What
• http://www.prochoice.org/about_abortion/facts/facts_mifepristone.ht
ml
• http://www.brown.edu/Courses/BI0032/repro/ru486.htm