ArticleNature medicine2024
Effectiveness and safety of telehealth medication abortion in the USA.
Article in Nature medicine, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 27 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
27 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 58 citations in OpenAlex.
- The use of telemedicine services for medical abortion.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2025Pooled it
- Regulatory Policy Changes and Mifepristone Access Through Pharmacies in Australia.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Geographic Access to Crisis Pregnancy Centers and Abortion Facilities by State Abortion Policy.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Perceived Importance of Abortion Care Features and Access to Telehealth Technologies Among Medication Abortion Patients by Abortion Care Model: Cross-Sectional Analysis of a Prospective Cohort Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Article
- "I don't want to be in the energy of that situation": Embodied experiences with telehealth medication abortion.SSM. Qualitative research in health · 2026Article
- Reasons for Choosing Telehealth Abortion Based on Food Insecurity Status: United States, 2021-2022.American journal of public health · 2026Article
- "It Was So Easy in a Situation That's So Hard": Structural Stigma and Telehealth Abortion.Journal of health and social behavior · 2026Article
- Impact of Dobbs v. Jackson on Abortion Access in Colorado: An Analysis of Incidence and Demographic Shifts Post-Roe.Maternal and child health journal · 2026Article
- Effectiveness and safety of medication abortion with vs without screening ultrasonography or pelvic examination.American journal of obstetrics and gynecology · 2025Article
- Early Pregnancy Termination with Mifepristone and Misoprostol: Concurrent vs. 48-Hour Interval Administration in a Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Characteristics of people obtaining mifepristone and misoprostol and misoprostol-only telehealth medication abortion services in the United States.Contraception · 2025Article
- Perspectives on options for self-sourcing medication abortion after implementation of Texas Senate Bill 8.Contraception · 2025Article
- Does telemedicine hold the key for reproductive health care? A quantitative examination of women's intentions toward use and accurate information disclosure.Health services research · 2025Article
- Imagining Coat-Hangers and Pills: A Qualitative Exploration of Abortion Beliefs and Attitudes in Hostile Policy Contexts in the United States.Perspectives on sexual and reproductive health · 2025Article
- Changes in Support for Advance Provision and Over-the-Counter Access to Medication Abortion.JAMA network open · 2025Article
- No-Test Screening Protocols May Disproportionately Exclude Structurally Oppressed Communities Who Could Benefit from Accessing Medication Abortion.Health equity · 2025Article
- A Pediatric- and Adolescent-Focused Medication Abortion Curriculum for Multidisciplinary Trainees.MedEdPORTAL : the journal of teaching and learning resources · 2025Article
- Acceptance and use of mobile health technology in post-abortion care.BMC health services research · 2024Article
- "Trust Women": Characteristics of and learnings from patients of a Shield Law medication abortion practice in the United States.Perspectives on sexual and reproductive health · 2024Article
- Pricing of medication abortion in the United States, 2021-2023.Perspectives on sexual and reproductive health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Telehealth abortion has become critical to addressing surges in demand in states where abortion remains legal but evidence on its effectiveness and safety is limited. California Home Abortion by Telehealth (CHAT) is a prospective study that follows pregnant people who obtained medication abortion via telehealth from three virtual clinics operating in 20 states and Washington, DC between April 2021 and January 2022. Individuals were screened using a standardized no-test protocol, primarily relying on their medical history to assess medical eligibility. We assessed effectiveness, defined as complete abortion after 200 mg mifepristone and 1,600 μg misoprostol (or lower) without additional intervention; safety was measured by the absence of serious adverse events. We estimated rates using multivariable logistic regression and multiple imputation to account for missing data. Among 6,034 abortions, 97.7% (95% confidence interval (CI) = 97.2-98.1%) were complete without subsequent known intervention or ongoing pregnancy after the initial treatment. Overall, 99.8% (99.6-99.9%) of abortions were not followed by serious adverse events. In total, 0.25% of patients experienced a serious abortion-related adverse event, 0.16% were treated for an ectopic pregnancy and 1.3% abortions were followed by emergency department visits. There were no differences in effectiveness or safety between synchronous and asynchronous models of care. Telehealth medication abortion is effective, safe and comparable to published rates of in-person medication abortion care.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.