July 15, 2015: Natural Causes or Medical Contraindication?

The circumstances of “Petra’s” death raise questions. While the FDA included her death in the list of maternal deaths after legal chemical abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol, her cause of death was labeled “a natural death from emphysema” and the link to the abortion drugs was downplayed. However, the adverse event report itself indicates that there was more to her death.

Petra, age 40, was a chronic smoker. She took mifepristone and then misoprostol for a chemical abortion and called the abortion facility with concerns about chills and pain. The facility dismissed her concerns as normal side effects. At 5:30 PM, Petra’s daughter called the abortion facility to tell them that she found her mother dead on the bathroom floor.

She had a wound on her head consistent with a fall and died only hours after taking misoprostol. Her baby’s intact body was found inside of her at her autopsy. It was discovered that she had severe emphysema and undiagnosed atherosclerosis.

While this case may appear somewhat unrelated to the abortion at a glance, it mirrors the 1991 death of Nadine Walkowiak in France. Nadine was also a chronic heavy smoker and died only hours after receiving the prostaglandin dose after mifepristone. In fact, cardiac or respiratory conditions such as those caused by heavy smoking are contraindications to the chemical abortion regimen. As a chronic smoker and a person with atherosclerosis, Petra should never have been given those drugs. She likely suffered a cardiac or pulmonary event similar to what happened to Nadine, then fell and was unable to get help. She died after being given contraindicated abortion drugs.

Individual Case Safety Report number 11283049-02-00-01. Danco Laboratories, LLC. Office of Post-marketing Drug Risk Assessment, Food and Drug Administration. Received December 8, 2015.