Psychological Outcomes of Medical Versus Surgical Elective First Trimester Abortion

This article reviews the most recent studies that compare psychological outcomes after either a medical or a surgical abortion to pre-procedure findings. Some studies demonstrated slightly higher levels of anxiety and depression following surgical versus medical methods. Studies that evaluated post-traumatic stress showed conflicting results. Overall, the majority of the studies demonstrated that psychological outcomes, specifically quality of life, anxiety and depression, are markedly improved following either method. Finally, the studies reviewed suggest that having a choice of method may improve women's psychological outcomes following abortion.