Mid-Trimester Termination of 51 Intact Pregnancies by Condom-Balloon Technique

Abstract

A total of 51 complicated intact pregnancies at Chiang Mai University Hospital which had indications for termination of pregnancy were accumulatively intervened and monitored. The interim evaluation has lately been carried out. All of them were between 13-28 weeks of gestation and terminated by extra-amniotic stimu lation with condom-balloon and subsequent oxytocin augmentation. The mean age of all patients was 26.43 years (ranged 18-39 years) and the mean gestation was 18.63 weeks (ranged 13-28 weeks). The rates of success of termination within 24, 48, and 72 hours were 56.9, 84.3, and 92.2 % respectively. The average induction-abortion time (IA) was 23 hours 49 minutes, which is not significantly different when comparing primiparity and multiparity. Only 3 out of 51 (6.4%) needed surgical curettage due to incomplete expulsion. Only 3 cases developed fever but needed no intensive care. Blood loss was so minimal by close observation that this phenomenon should be substantiated. The result of this paper is quite impressive and strongly suggests that the use of condom balloon for stimulation and termination of mid-trimester pregnancy is an appropriate procedure because of high efficacy, very minimal complications and it is not expensive. Further investigation and a wider scale of clinical monitoring are suggested. (Thai J Obstet Gynaecol 1993;4:105-110.)