a synthetic steroid antiprogestogen used in the termination of pregnancy in the 1st 49 days of gestation
as not all women will miscarry with mifepristone alone, they are usually given the prostaglandin misoprostol 36-48hrs (buccal dose of 800mcg) after the dose
89% of women with menstrual delay 35days or less (ie. <5wks pregnant) have a complete abortion with median time to abortion being 51hrs post-dose
can also be used to prepare for termination of pregnancy in the 2nd trimester, but 30% will need surgical evacuation in the 2nd trimester even with dual Rx with misoprostol
usual dose: 200mg
not recommended for women with liver or renal failure
ectopic pregnancy is a C/I
also has some action on glucocorticoid receptors thus adrenal failure is a C/I, and those on corticosteroids may need to increase their dose
combination with misoprostol commonly causes nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea, plus the expected vaginal bleeding of miscarriage which can sometimes warrant blood transfusion
it has also been shown to increase the life span of female flies and worms who have mated apparently by blocking the male's sex protein which changes metabolic pathways in the females1)