Outpatient termination of pregnancy: experience in a family practice residency

At the University of Washington Family Medicine Clinic, termination of pregnancy procedures were performed on 260 patients. Their records were reviewed, and an analysis was completed on demographic data, technical procedure parameters, and complication rates during and following the procedure. The majority of patients were not primigravida. Fifteen percent were between six and eight weeks of gestation. Following the procedure, 3.8 percent had excessive bleeding, and 2.7 percent developed endometritis at rates comparable to those found in the obstetrics and gynecology literature. No known perforations occurred. Outpatient termination of pregnancy performed on selected patients in a family practice setting can be a procedure of low morbidity.