Pain and distress during abortion.

Area of Science:

• Medical procedure assessment
• Women's health
• Pain and distress measurement

Background:

• Limited research addresses the immediate pain and distress of abortion procedures.
• Focus has been primarily on long-term psychological effects.
• Understanding procedural pain is crucial for patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the pain and distress experienced by women during first-trimester abortion.
• To assess the utility of the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ) and visual analog scale (VAS) in measuring abortion-related pain.
• To compare pain descriptors with other pain experiences.

Main Methods:

• 35 women undergoing first-trimester abortion participated.
• Pain intensity was measured using the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ) and a visual analog scale (VAS).
• Distress was assessed via VAS, state anxiety, behavioral observation, and observer ratings.

Main Results:

• Women reported high state anxiety before the procedure.
• Significant pain and distress were experienced during the abortion.
• Pain descriptors from the MPQ aligned with previous findings for abortion, labor, and menstrual pain.
• MPQ scores did not vary based on anesthesia type.

Conclusions:

• First-trimester abortion is a painful and distressing medical event.
• The MPQ is a suitable tool for characterizing and quantifying abortion-related pain.
• Findings underscore the importance of managing procedural pain and distress.