Acupuncture for Pain Management During Uterine Aspiration

The proposed study will be a randomized, double blinded, placebo-controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of auricular acupuncture as adjunct for pain management during abortion. Women seeking first trimester uterine aspiration procedure who enroll in the study will be randomized to receive: 1) auricular acupuncture using pyonex needles, 2) placebo using an adhesive, 3) or routine care. Both participants and the treating physician will be unaware of treatment assignment. The primary outcome will compare the maximum pain score as measured by the visual analog scale (VAS) between the auricular acupuncture group and the routine care group. The secondary outcome will compare the maximum pain score between placebo group to the routine care group. The study will also investigate patient satisfaction.