Facts About Abortion

Many people have heard the terms pro-life and pro-choice. Usually, those same people rest on one side or the other. But is there really an answer to whether or not abortion is wrong or right? Well, before we get into the politics of such arguments, lets review some facts about abortion and see if we can't come up with a better conclusion.

Some reasons for abortions are as follows:

• health and safety of the mother
• inconvenience
• genetic problems with fetus (baby)

Now, let's go over the different types of abortions that there are:

Spontaneous Abortion - referred to as a miscarriage; seems to occur when trauma inadvertently effects the fetus (baby); the body naturally expels the pregnancy (can also occur when the fetus (baby) has severe genetic problems or disease)


Induced Abortion - abortions that are done consciously by medical means

• therapeutic abortions (these occur when the mother's health is at risk and the pregnancy must be terminated; may also be an option when the fetus has a severe genetic abnormality that may inhibit development or even cause death; also in the case of multiple births. sometimes the number of births may be reduced to preserve the mother's own health.

• elective abortions (the most well-known type; done mainly for the personal reasons of the mother.

Types of Elective Abortions are:

1. Surgical
2. Chemical
3. Herbal

Surgical abortions are the most popular and the type of surgical abortion depends on the stage of pregnancy.
In the 1st Trimester there are three types of surgical procedures to choose from:

Manual Vacuum Aspiration - (MVA) is an outpatient procedure that is performed in about 15min. A local anesthetic is given to numb the cervix. Then, an instrument called a "dilator" is used to open the cervix or perhaps medically induced dilation with drugs. At last, a sterile cannula is inserted into the uterus and attached via tubing to the pump. This pump then creates a vacuum which empties the uterine contents. Once the tissue is removed from the uterus it is then examined to make sure that all the necessary contents were extracted during the procedure. Expected contents include the embryo or fetus (baby) as well as the decidua, chorionic villi, amniotic fluid, amniotic membrane and other tissue. Once this procedure is complete the patient is then placed in a temporary observance area to be monitored and then a 2 week follow-up appointment is scheduled.

Electric Vacuum Aspiration - (EVA) is the same as the MVA just using an electric pump as opposed to a manual one. But the same amount of pressure is applied in both to extract the fetus (baby) from the uterus.

Dilation and Cutterage - The physician will first dilate the uterus, this is usually done several hours before the actual procedure. The woman is then placed under general anesthetics before the surgery. A curette, a metal rod with a handle on one end and a sharp loop on the other is inserted into the uterus through the dilated cervix. The curette is then used to scrape the lining of the uterus to remove the tissue. Once again, the tissue is examined for completelness making sure that all contents were extracted.

Chemical Abortions

Certain drugs are used in chemical abortions followed by other drugs. Two chemicals used are Methotrexate and Mifepristone

Methotrexate is used in the treatment of cancer and autoimmune disease. Methotrexate is used in combination with Misoprostol which is used for the prevention of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)-induced Gastric ulcers, for early abortion, to treat missed miscarriage, and to induce labor.

Mifepristone is a synthetic steroid compound used as a pharmaceutical. It is used as an abortifacient in the first two months of pregnancy, and in smaller doses as an emergency contreceptive.

The last choice in 'Elective Abortion' is one that is an older method used before the Roe vs. Wade case. This method is known as the 'herbal method'. In the herbal method some herbs used were 'black cohosh', 'pennyroyal', and 'tansy' were used to expel the fetus (baby) from the body. They used these herbs even though they were very dangerous and often times lethal.

So in conclusion, after becoming more informed with some procedural facts about abortion can one make a better decision whether or not to terminate the life/lives. As always, I have to raise the question is there other options other than abortion. From personal experience, I can safely say that, yes, there are far greater options that I feel need to be explored and considered. I was an unwanted pregnancy to a 16yr. old girl. Everyone had mixed feelings about what she needed/ should do but her ultimate decision was adoption. Everyday, I'm thankful that this was the choice that was made. I am now married to a wonderful man, have 2 beautiful children and my 3rd is due in early December. With all the wonderful things I've been able to experience, I'm all the more grateful for the fact that I was adopted. Secondly, I have 2 siblings that were born with several ailments and ultimately retardation. One of them was my little sister. Just in her first few months of life, her brain stopped growing and ultimately led to her inability to function as "normal". My grandmother, however, took her in and raised her as her own giving my grandmother the will to live. My sister was said to have a life-span of 2-5yrs and she lived to be 10years old. My grandmother taught her how to say things and she even could sing. It was an amazing thing to experience growing up.

So even though, a fetus (baby) that seems to have birth defects or abnormalities, there is someone out there that would light up to have a child like that in their lives. With adoption, you may have to carry all the way to term, but you would never have to see the actual baby at the end. Even if you didn't choose adoption, there's foster care. My mother's best friend was a foster mother for many, many years and she eventually fell so in love with one of her foster children that she in-turn adopted him. In life, there are many many choices. Some good, some bad. Some better, but then there's always the best option. That is to allow life to happen. To make the choice that, even if YOU don't feel a baby is something you need, maybe that baby is something that someone else needs. There's always a best choice, and choosing life is definitely the best in this case.