Table 1

Summary of the characteristics of the included studies

Study and setting	Population	Intervention/comparison
Grimes 2004 RCT (pilot) USA	n=18 English-speaking women aged ≥18 years with gestational age of 13.9–19.9 weeks, including patients who had experienced a fetal death or had a fetus with congenital anomalies or chromosomal defect.	Medical abortion: Oral mifepristone 200 mg on Day 1 and vaginal misoprostol 800 μg on Day 3 ± oral misoprostol 400 μg every 3 hours up to a maximum of four doses. Pain relief provided by a patient-controlled analgesia system dispensing a continuous infusion of morphine. versus Surgical abortion: Dilation & evacuation performed under light general anaesthesia.
Kelly 2010 RCT UK	n=122 Pregnant women requesting and accepted for an abortion under Clause C of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act (1990) amendment of the Abortion Act (1967), gestational age 13⁺⁰ to 19⁺⁶ weeks at the time of abortion; women aged <16 years also eligible if deemed Fraser competent and had a parent/guardian present and consenting; previous caesarean section was not an exclusion criterion.	Medical abortion: Oral mifepristone 200 mg on Day 1 and vaginal misoprostol 800 μg 36–48 hours later ± oral/vaginal misoprostol 400 μg (depending on vaginal bleeding) every 3 hours up to a maximum of four doses (pain relief not described). versus Surgical abortion: Vacuum aspiration performed under general anaesthesia.