Anti-haemorrhaging drugs to aid abortions to be approved by FDA


The Food and Drug Admi-nistration (FDA) will approve the use of anti-haemorrhaging drugs to prevent blood loss following abortions.

Meanwhile, a long-running Public Health Ministry survey of pregnant women attending public hospitals reveals that more than one-quarter had abortions while in hospital.

FDA secretary-general Dr Siriwat Tiptaradol said a working committee comprising representatives of the agency and the Royal Thai College of Obstetricians and Gynaecolo-gists would approve the used of anti-haemorrhaging drugs to reduce the risk of excessive bleeding following terminations.

The drugs will be approved for use at Medical Council of Thailand-registered obstetrics clinics as well as public hospitals.

The college proposed that patients have access to these drugs no matter the reason for an abortion because they can save lives, Siriwat said.

Medical Council of Thailand president Dr Somsak Lohlekha said it would regulate anti-haemorrhaging drugs and was looking at guideline details, especially permitted clinic and patient profiles.

The drugs could come into use as early as next month, but will not be available over the counter and will not be used in all terminations. Their application will be approved in cases where there is risk.

Child Watch director Amornwich Nakornthap said the approval would benefit both young and adult women whose lives were at risk during abortions.

He does not believe their use will lead to more unwanted pregnancies. It is not something likely to lead to unprotected sex, such as alcohol, pornography or nightclubbing, he added.

A Public Health Ministry survey taken since 1999 of 45,990 women attending public hospitals found that 28.5 per cent had had their pregnancies terminated while in hospital.

Among those having abortions, 46.8 per cent were aged between 20 and 24 and 30 per cent were under 20. Most pregnancies are terminated after 13 weeks, which is considered risky.

The most common reason for abortions is economic hardship and social factors, at 60.2 per cent. Almost 40 per cent of terminations are carried out because of health risks and another 39.8 per cent are performed because of the presence of disease.

Duangkamon Sajirawattanakul,
Pongphon Sarnsamak
The Nation