Abortion

Abortion, in its most commonly used sense, refers to the deliberate early termination of a pregnancy, resulting in the death of the embryo or fetus. Medically, the term also refers to the early termination of a pregnancy by natural causes ("spontaneous abortion" or miscarriage, which ends 1 in 5 of all pregnancies, usually within the first 13 weeks) or to the cessation of normal growth of a body part or organ. What follows is a discussion of the issues related to deliberate or "induced" abortion.

"Morning after or "emergency" contraceptive drugs that are taken within 72 hours of sex interfere with the release of eggs from the ovary or with fertilization, and so are not generally considered to be forms of abortion, though some groups (notably the Roman Catholic Church) consider them to be abortions, because they interfere with implantation of a zygote when taken later. (The medical definition of Pregnancy requires that implantation has already occurred, so technically emergency contraceptives do not interfere with pregnancy. The controversy arises when one considers that conception occurs before implantation, and so some believe the zygote has a soul before pregnancy actually starts.)

Table of contents

1 Methods of performing abortion
2 Possible side effects
3 Related topics

Methods of performing abortion

Depending on the stage of pregnancy, an abortion is performed by a number of different methods. For the earliest terminations (before nine weeks or so) a chemical abortion is the usual method. The procedure consists of giving either methotrexate or mifepristone (RU-486) followed by administration of misoprostol. Approximately 8% of these abortions require surgical followup.

Concurrent with chemical abortion and extending up until around the fifteenth week, suction-aspiration or vacuum abortion is the most common approach, replacing the more risky dilation and curettage (D & C). Manual vacuum aspiration (MVE) consists of emptying the uterus by suction using a manual syringe. From the fifteenth week up until around the eighteenth week a surgical dilation and evacuation (D & E) is used. D&E consists of opening the cervix of the uterus and emptying it using surgical instruments and suction.

Dilation and suction curettage consists of emptying the uterus by suction using a special apparatus. Curettage is cleaning the walls of uterus with a curette. Dilation and curettage (D&C) is a standard gynaecological procedure performed for a variety of reasons, such as examination.

As the fetus size increases, other techniques must be used to secure abortion in the third trimester. Premature expulsion of the fetus can be induced with prostaglandin; this can be coupled with injecting the amniotic fluid with saline or urea solution. Very late abortions can be brought about by the controversial intact dilation and extraction (D & X) or a hysterotomy abortion, similar to a caesarian section, and requiring the surgical decompression of the fetus's head before evacuation.

Possible side effects

Postabortion psychological problems

Abortion may also increase a woman's risk of depression. (While the causes of depression vary, this article deals only with abortion-related depression). According to a study of 1,884 women conducted by the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, women who did not carry their first pregnancies to term are 65% more likely to have clinical depression around eight years later. Contrary, other studies did not support that depression may be caused by abortion. For example: A study of 2.525 women revealed that women who had an abortion were more likely to report depression or lower life satisfaction. However, they also often reported about rape, childhood physical and sexual abuse, and violent partners. After controlling the history of abuse, partner characteristics, and background variables, abortion was not related to poorer mental health (Denious, J. & Russo, N. F. (2000). The Socio-Political Context of Abortion and its Relationship to Women?s Mental Health. In J. Ussher (Ed.).ÃÂÃÂ Women?s Health: Contemporary International Perspectives (pp. 431-439).ÃÂÃÂ London: British Psychological Society.).

Postabortion physical problems

Physical complications of abortion

Studies found that the serious physical complications of an abortion is less than 1%. The only viable alternative - birth - is several times riskier than abortion. The complications depend on the abortion method.

Breast Cancer

An analysis of 53 epidemological studies undertaken in 16 countries did not find evidence for a relationship between abortion and the risk of getting breast cancer (Breast cancer and abortion. The Lancet, 2004;363;pg 1007).