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Abortion pill users died of infection

Infection Control Monitor, December 2, 2005

Federal scientists are investigating the sudden deaths of four young, healthy California women who died of a rare bacterial infection after using the abortion pill, the Denver Post has reported. Scientists do not yet know how this serious complication is linked to the pill Mifeprex, also called mifepristone or RU-486.

In July, the Food and Drug Administration revised the Mifeprex label for the second time in eight months to warn of symptoms of infection with the bacteria, called "Clostridium sordellii." By then, the microbe had been confirmed in two of the California deaths and a similar fatality in Canada.

Approximately 508,000 women in the United States have used this drug since its approval five years ago. The FDA will be meeting with experts to determine how often this infection has occurred and to consider its options.

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