SynthesisStudies in family planning2018
Medical Abortion Provision by Pharmacies and Drug Sellers in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review.
Synthesis in Studies in family planning, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 58 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
58 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- How, when and where? A systematic review on abortion decision making in legally restricted settings in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.BMC women's health · 2022Pooled it
- Medical abortion offered in pharmacy versus clinic-based settings.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2021Pooled it
- Effectiveness, safety and acceptability of medical abortion at home versus in the clinic: a systematic review and meta-analysis in response to COVID-19.BMJ global health · 2020Pooled it
- Self-administered versus provider-administered medical abortion.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2020Pooled it
- Severity and management of postabortion complications in Kenya: results from a nationally representative cross-sectional survey.BMJ global health · 2026Article
- Medicine retailers in Goma, the "white coats of the pharmacy": unity among diversity.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Pathways to care and service preferences, and experiences of women who self-manage abortion through community pharmacies in two counties of Kenya.BMJ global health · 2026Article
- Quality of Medication Abortion Services From Pharmacies and Drugstores in Ethiopia: A Two-Stage Study.BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology · 2026Article
- Exploring the availability and accessibility of medication abortion pills without a prescription: a mystery client study of pharmacies in Mumbai, India.BMC public health · 2026Article
- "You can do this at home and people won't find out": a qualitative exploration of women's experiences with the use of medication abortion drugs received directly from pharmacies in Nepal.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Estimating Incidence of Induced Abortion and Unintended Pregnancy Among Women in Refugee Settlements in Uganda.Studies in family planning · 2025Article
- Exploring pharmacy provision of medication abortion pills in Nepal: a mixed-methods study of pharmacy workers' knowledge and practices.Sexual and reproductive health matters · 2025Article
- Self-Managed Medication Abortion: History, Evidence, Models of Care, and Policy Considerations.American journal of public health · 2025Article
- Article
- Voluntary termination of pregnancy in the context of decriminalized safe abortion: a longitudinal study on the availability, coverage, and utilization of services during 2016-2021 in Nampula province, northern Mozambique.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Incidence and safety of abortion in two humanitarian settings in Uganda and Kenya: a respondent-driven sampling study.EClinicalMedicine · 2025Article
- Quality of Information on Medication Abortion in Private Pharmacies: Results from a Mystery Client Study in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Quality of care offered by health care retail markets for medication abortion self-management: Findings from states in Nigeria and India.PLOS global public health · 2025Article
- A descriptive summary of the WHO availability assessments of medical abortion medicines in eight African countries.Reproductive health · 2024Article
- Haematometra arising from multiple abortions: a comprehensive case report.The Journal of international medical research · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
We undertook a systematic review to assess 1) the level and quality of pharmacy and drug shop provision of medical abortion (MA) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and 2) interventions to improve quality of provision. We used standardized terms to search six databases for peer-reviewed and grey literature. We double-extracted data using a standardized template, and double-graded studies for methodological quality. We identified 22 studies from 16 countries reporting on level and quality of MA provision through pharmacies and drug sellers, and three intervention studies. Despite widespread awareness and provision of MA drugs, even in legally restricted contexts, most studies found that pharmacy workers and drug sellers had poor knowledge of effective regimens. Evidence on interventions to improve pharmacy and drug shop provision of MA was limited and generally low quality, but indicated that training could be effective in improving knowledge. Programmatic attention should focus on the development and rigorous evaluation of innovative interventions to improve women's access to information about MA self-management in low-and middle-income countries.
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