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Abortion - elective or therapeutic - Overview

Alternative Names

Therapeutic abortion; Elective abortion

Definition of Abortion - elective or therapeutic:

Elective or therapeutic abortion is the deliberate termination of a pregnancy.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

Elective abortions are those initiated by personal choice. Roughly 20% of all pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) end in elective abortion. It has been reported that since abortion was legalized in 1973 through 2002, over 42 million legal abortions have been performed.

First trimester of pregnancy

Normal uterine anatomy (cut section)

Early weeks of pregnancy

Reviewed last on: 9/19/2006
Audra Robertson, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

References

Finer LB, Henshaw SK. Disparities in rates of unintended pregnancy in the United States, 1994 and 2001. Perspect Sex Reprod Health. 2006 Jun;38(2):90-6.

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