Bleeding pattern after medical management of early pregnancy loss with mifepristone–misoprostol and its prognostic value: a prospective observational cohort study

PURPOSE: To improve counseling of women by reporting bleeding characteristics at home after medical management of an early pregnancy loss (EPL) with mifepristone and misoprostol, and to evaluate occurring bleeding patterns as a prognostic tool. METHODS: This prospective two-center observational cohort study enrolled 197 women who presented with an EPL (embryonic or anembryonic miscarriage) from December 2017 to April 2019 and chose a home-based medical management with 200 mg mifepristone and 800 mcg misoprostol. From the day of mifepristone intake, the strength of vaginal bleeding was recorded daily for 2 weeks by the patient herself using a diary sheet. Treatment success was defined as no histologically confirmed retained products of conception (RPOC) within 3 months. After considering all drop-out criteria, 154 women were included in the analysis. RESULTS: 40.0% of patients (95% CI 30.4–49.6) already reported bleeding onset in the time period between the intake of mifepristone and misoprostol. The median duration of vaginal bleeding including spotting was 13 days. The chance of RPOC was about sixfold (OR 6.06, 95% CI 2.15–17.10) in the group of persistent bleeding after 2 weeks compared to the group with a terminated bleeding at that time. Exploratory regression analysis indicated association of higher serum levels of leukocytes at treatment start with RPOC (p = 0.013). CONCLUSIONS: Terminated bleeding after 2 weeks is a useful indicator for successful medical induction of EPL. Women undergoing medical treatment with mifepristone must be informed about the high frequency of bleeding onset before misoprostol intake. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: DRKS—German Clinical Trials Register, ID: DRKS00013515, registration date 05.12.2017. http://www.drks.de/DRKS00013515. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00404-021-06291-5.