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Brazil shuts down websites distributing abortion drugs

The Brazilian government has shut down 75 websites that sell abortifacient drugs since 2005, according to JB Online, the internet version of the newspaper Jornal do Brasil, reports LifeSiteNews.com.

The illegal websites, which reportedly do much of their marketing through Google's Orkut service (a system similar to Facebook), offer the drug Cytotec, an over-the-counter medication containing misoprostol, which is approved for treating gastric ulcers.

In quantities that exceed the maximum approved dosage, however, misoprostol causes the uterus to contract violently, inducing miscarriage or premature birth. Despite the fact that it is not approved for such use, many websites catering to Brazilians and other Latin Americans sell the drug and inform women how to use them to induce abortions.

"With a transaction that can last less than ten minutes, by email or MSN, it is possible to acquire doses of up to eight tablets of Cytotec ... at 50 Reals (21 USD)," says JB Online. "The dose, according to the president of the Regional Council of Medicine of the State of Rio de Janeiro ... is extremely high and can cause death in the user" by rupturing the uterus and causing intense hemorrhaging.

According to Pfizer, the company that manufactures Cytotec, the drug can cause an "incomplete" miscarriage, which "could lead to dangerous bleeding, hospitalization, surgery, infertility, or maternal or fetal death."

The process often leaves behind the remains of the deceased infant, which reportedly happens almost 200,000 times per year in Brazil, although the numbers may be much higher. The condition is medically dangerous and requires the intervention of a physician.

Among the organizations that promote the use of misoprostol for abortion is "Women on Waves," a group that does abortions in international waters for women in countries where the procedure is illegal. The group maintains detailed instructions on how to use misoprostol to cause an abortion, despite the risk of injury and death and despite the fact that it violates the drug's approved dosage level and use.

Abortion is illegal in Brazil, although it is not penalized in cases of rape. The use of misoprostol is restricted to hospitals in Brazil, and its use for causing an abortion has been explicitly prohibited since 2005 by the National Agency of Health Vigilance (ANVISA). Due to the highly controlled nature of the drug, JB Online speculates that it is being obtained illegally from the hospital system.

TAGS: Brazil illegal websites abortion drugs abortions pro-life

[02/20/2009]

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