RESUMO
PIP: Potassium permanganate in tablets is still used in Mexico under the wrong belief that it will induce abortion. What it does, instead, is to provoke deep burns and ulcers in the vaginal walls, and to cause serious hemorrhage. This study investigates 200 women who used potassium permanganate as an abortifacient agent, and who needed hospitalization. Average age was 28; 58.5% had 4 or more children; 88.5% were married, and 11.5% were not; all patients belonged to the lowest socioeconomic class. Many had antecedents of induced abortion, and most had been amenorrheic for only 4-5 weeks. 23.5% of patients was not pregnant. Acute anemia was the most common complication, followed by hypovolemic shock. In this series there was 21.5% of diagnostic error, which shows the importance of suspecting this pathologic entity in women bleeding profusely and for whom induced abortion is suspected.^ieng