Abortion

Sexual intercourse, without protection, may result in an unwanted pregnancy. When this happens, a decision has to be made contemplating not only the government and religious laws but also the inner perspectives of those involved. If the decision is to have an abortion, even if it may be legal, you have to be prepared physically and psychologically for this process. Abortion is the termination of pregnancy within the first 20 weeks of conception, and it should always be done under medical attention with an operation, pills or herbs. They are various pills that can be used to produce abortion and some of them are called emergency contraception. They contain the contraceptive substances estrogen and progesterone that are effective when taken in high dosage in the first hours after the sexual intercourse - preferably no later than 72 hours. The longer you wait to take the pill after the unprotected sex, the less effective will it be in provoking abortion. Effectiveness goes from 95%, if taken within 24 hours to 85% between 25-48 hours, and to 58% between 49-72 hours. Another pill that is taken mostly by teenagers who don't have the access to emergency pills, nor medical intervention and in countries where abortion is illegal, is Misoprostol. This pill is usually prescribed for stomach disease, but the side effects are that it induces a contraction of the uterus and maturation of the cervix, causing the release of the embryo that had been implanted in the uterus. Since this use is not medically approved, the correct dosage is not documented, so it can be dangerous to venture and use it, because the side effects range from incomplete abortion to excessive uterine bleeding or persistence of pregnancy. In those cases it would have caused damage to the fetus. This pill can be taken orally, inserted in the vagina or both; only if the stage of the pregnancy is in the seventh (some say ninth) week or sooner. Combination of Mifepristone and Misoprostol is used as a medical abortive, the first medicine kills the fetus and the second given vaginally induces the expulsion of the dead fetus. This should be taken with pregnancy stage no greater than seven weeks and always under medical supervision. Deaths related to the use of this combination have been reported and were caused by infections due to retention of part of membrane or fetus. Surgical abortion is done in different ways: Aspiration: This is a method used within the first 6 to 12 weeks of gestation. In this method the cervix is dilated with Misoprostol which is colocated intravaginaly. The cervix is held in place and dilated more to permit the entrance of a tube that is connected to a suction device which aspirates the fetus and all the membranes. Side effcts caused by this procedure could be retention of membranes, cramps, excesive bleeding and infections. Dilation and Curettage: This is used during the first 12 to 15 weeks of gestation. Here the cervix is also dilated with Misoprsotol, then with special utensiles it is opened more and then they proceed to scrape the fetus and all the membranes that sorrounds it with a looped shaped knife. Perforation of the uterus can occur, as retention of membranes, excesive bleeding and cramps. Dilation and Evacuation is performed during the 15 to 21 weeks of gestation. This procedure is started with dilatation of the cervix the day before. The same day of the procedure the cervix is dilated more and held in place, then the uterus is scraped with the same utensile used in curetage and dilatation method. Posterior to this, the aspirator is used and a forcep may also be used, if needed. Excesive bleeding may occur, cramps, perforation of the uterus,, and infection. Dilation and Extraction is performed after 21 weeks of gestation and it is not commonly used. A laminaria is inserted in the cervix for dilation two days prior the procedure. The fetus is rotated and held with forceps by the legs and then pulled out. Since the head is too big to pass through the artificially dilatated cervix an incision is made to the skull and a catheter suctions the cerebral material for the skull to collaps, then the fetus can be completlly removed. All of these methods may produce side effects such as prolonged bleeding, infections, and the uterus can be punctured. Another form of abortion involves the use of herbs. Its effectiveness is not clinically proven, and they are usually taken immediately without the proper laboratory verification of pregnancy. Some of the herbs that have been used by women for these purposes are: • Queen Anne's Lace Seeds (wild carrot) • Rue (herb of grace) • Smartweed leaves • Cotton Root Bark • Vitamin C Unwanted pregnancy should be decreasing, due to the ample spectrum of contraceptive options that is available. But it is not happening as much as it would be expected. Possibly, because we aren't yet as open as we should be with teenagers about the various contraceptive methods and the persistence of certain attitudes surrounding the use of condoms and some other contraceptive methods. If the only causes of unwanted pregnancy would have been rape cases, failure of the contraceptive method or the incapability to use contraceptive methods due to health restrictions, then unplanned pregnancy would be much lower. But lets be honest the misinformation or the lack of information still remains as the main cause of unwanted pregnancy. Because of that abortion has not been eradicated.