Graduação

1777

Abortion and misoprostol: health practices and scientific controversy

Marilena Cordeiro Dias Villela Corrêa 1
Miryam Mastrella 2

Instituto de Medicina
Social, Universidade
Estadual do Rio de Janeiro.
Rua São Francisco Xavier
524/7º andar, Maracanã.
20559-900 Rio de Janeiro
RJ. [e-mail]
2
Instituto de Bioética,
Direitos Humanos e
Gênero, Universidade de
Brasília.
1

Abstract This article puts into perspective the controversy between the association of the use of misoprostol for abortion and teratogenicity studies of the type found in a case report. The use of herbal medicinal drugs and the medical-obstetric and national and international norms governing the registration and circulation of pharmaceutical products were examined. Official documents of ANVISA, the Ministry of Health and the World
Health Organization on the use of misoprostol, as well as 68 articles such as case reports published in national journals, linking abortion, misoprostol and teratogenicity were reviewed, systematically filed and analyzed using the monographic method. The legal prohibition of abortion prevents the proper prescription and use of a drug such as misoprostol that is both safe and effective. Thus, the danger for the health of women is linked not to the intrinsic characteristics of the drug, but to the moral arguments that constitute negligence and disregard for the fundamental rights of women.
Key words Abortion, Misoprostol, Moebius syndrome, Health, Scientific knowledge, production

Resumo Este artigo coloca em perspectiva a controvérsia entre a associação do uso de misoprostol para aborto e teratogenicidade, encontrada em estudos do tipo relato de caso, e a consagração do uso de medicamentos à base do fármaco na área médico-obstétrica e em documentos normativos nacionais e internacionais que regulam o registro e a circulação de produtos farmacêuticos. Através do método monográfico, foram revisados, sistematizados e