Self-reported elevated pain levels: A coping strategy used by women undergoing medical abortion procedures

ABSTRACT

Purpose

Epidural analgesia alleviates pain during normal labour but women who undergo medical abortion procedures using epidural analgesia continue to express high pain levels. To understand this we assessed if patients undergoing medical abortions, treated with epidural analgesia, use their pain for psychological benefits.

Methods

This study comprised 105 patients over 13 weeks of gestational age diagnosed with foetal abnormalities after selecting a medical abortion procedure using epidural analgesia. Three questionnaires were handed-out: 1) ‘Need for Affect’, assessed the motivation to react to emotions; 2) ‘Pain-Levels’ 3) PANA- ‘Positive Affect’ (PA), ‘Negative Affect’ (NA) assessed emotions pre-abortion and post-abortion.

Results

Patients with a strong Need for Affect and high Pain-Levels expressed a stronger PA post-abortion (b = .69, se = .11, β = .68, p < .001, 95%CI [.48,.90]). Patients with a strong NA pre-abortion and high Pain-Levels expressed a higher NA post-abortion (b = .48, se = .11, β = .53, p < .001, 95%CI [.26, .70]).

Conclusion

Patients with a strong Need for Affect who express a strong PA pre-abortion intensify their pain to fulfill their Need for Affect, which then helps recovery. Patients with a strong NA pre-abortion and high Pain-Levels indicate a less favourable outcome.

KEYWORDS:

• Medical abortion
• positive affect
• negative affect
• pain
• need for affect

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics approval

Helsinki Committee (0554-13-HMO)

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.