NCT07537894

Perioperative Dexmedetomidine to Reduce Post-procedure Grief Following Second-trimester Dilation and Evacuation

• Status: Not Yet Recruiting
• Phase: Phase 2 / Phase 3
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 100 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Stanford University · Academic / Other
• Sex: Female
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

People seeking second-trimester dilation and evacuation (D\&E) procedures are often facing profoundly challenging circumstances, including desired pregnancies complicated by fetal anomalies or demise, serious maternal health conditions, or changes in financial or relationship status. Although abortion regret is uncommon, the emotional burden surrounding these experiences is substantial: many patients experience significant grief and post-traumatic stress symptoms in the weeks to months following care. Perioperative interventions that decrease the body's stress response offer a promising opportunity to reduce downstream psychologic morbidity. Dexmedetomidine has been shown to reduce PTSD symptoms in other high-stress medical and surgical settings. The investigators are undertaking a randomized trial to evaluate whether perioperative administration of dexmedetomidine during second-trimester D\&E can reduce the frequency and severity of post-procedural grief, directly addressing an unmet need in patient-centered, trauma-informed abortion care.

Detailed description

The investigators will conduct a double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled, superiority trial of those undergoing D\&E between 16 and 26-weeks gestation at Stanford Health Care to evaluate the following aims: Aim 1: To assess the effect of perioperative dexmedetomidine on validated measures of grief in patients undergoing second-trimester D\&E. Aim 2: To evaluate the feasibility and implementation of perioperative dexmedetomidine within the routine workflow of outpatient OR-based D\&E procedures.

Conditions

• Abortion
• Stillbirth
• PTSD (Childbirth-Related)
• Grief (Traumatic Grief and Existential Grief)

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DRUG	Dexmedetomidine (IV) 0.5 mcg/kg	Infusion of dexmedetomidine 0.5ug/kg over 10 minutes at anesthesia induction
DRUG	Placebo	Saline infusion at equal volume to intervention arm

Timeline

• Start date: 2026-07-01
• Primary completion: 2027-07-01
• Completion: 2028-07-01
• First posted: 2026-04-17
• Last updated: 2026-04-17

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States

Regulatory

• FDA-regulated drug study