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Effects Of Abortion Article
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How to Deal with Teenage Pregnancy – Abortion and the Choice to Terminate a Pregnancy
from:The discovery of being pregnant can be a very traumatic event for a teen. There are a variety of options available to a young girl in this situation, each with its own emotional consequences. One option which many pregnant adolescents choose with a heavy heart is the termination of their teenage pregnancy. Abortions cause many teens to suffer in silence, often alone and ashamed of sharing their choice with others. Adults must make sure that a pregnant teen is not pressured into choosing an abortion and that she receives all the necessary emotional support when terminating her teenage pregnancy.
Abortion consists of ending a pregnancy before the unborn child can live outside the mother. An abortion can be either spontaneous, called a miscarriage, or it can be deliberate (induced). Before 1973, induced abortions were illegal; the case of Roe vs. Wade, however, forced the Supreme Court to confirm a woman’s right to choose to terminate an unwanted pregnancy.
The safest abortions are done in the first trimester of pregnancy, which corresponds to the first 12 weeks (weeks are calculated from the woman’s last menstrual period). There are a few different types of abortion, and the specific type performed on a particular teen depends on how far in the pregnancy she is.
The earliest type of termination of a teenage pregnancy – abortion - that can be done is called a medical abortion, which can be done within the first nine weeks of pregnancy. Two different drugs may be used, methotrexate or mifepristone (RU486), followed by another drug called misoprostol. This type of abortion does not require any type of surgery, but takes longer to work, requiring several visits to the doctor or clinic. There is often quite a bit of cramping and bleeding at home; indeed, the combination of these two drugs has the effect of causing the uterus to expel the fetus. This procedure is unsuccessful approximately 10% of the time, causing a woman to turn to the second major type of abortion, the surgical abortion.
The most common type of termination of teenage pregnancy – abortion - is vacuum aspiration, a surgical procedure in which an anesthetic is given to the woman to manually extract the fetus from her uterus. This procedure can be performed within the first trimester of pregnancy. For this procedure, the cervix is gently dilated about a quarter-inch and a narrow tube is inserted through the vagina, then the cervix, and into the uterus. The contents of the uterine lining are then vacuumed out. The procedure lasts a few minutes and more often than not the woman returns home the same day.
As with all pregnancies, teenage pregnancy abortions in the second trimester (beginning the 13th week of pregnancy) are rare, though they do occur; prostaglandin is given in a clinic and this results in uterine contractions which can last several hours. Abortions after the 24th week of pregnancy, or the third trimester, are only performed if the fetus is severely deformed or if the mother’s life is in danger.
Effects Of Abortion News
Spain's Rate of Abortion Doubles in a Decade (Zenit News Agency)
MADRID, Spain, DEC. 3, 2008 ( Zenit.org ).- Surgical abortions in Spain have increased in all age groups, especially among young unmarried women, reported the health ministry.
Read more...Abortion should stay legal (The Daily Toreador)
Over Thanksgiving break, I took some time to watch several episodes of "It's Always Sunny in Philly." In one episode, the ever-so-touchy question of whether or not to keep abortion legal comes up. Some say it is a woman's choice to do what she wants with her body.
Read more...Research Shows Need for Renewed Debate on Abortion (Scoop.co.nz)
Family First NZ says that the building body of evidence about the potential harm of abortion to the mother means that the debate on the abortion should be reopened.
Read more...Research links abortion and mental health issues (NZPA via Yahoo!Xtra News)
Women who have an abortion are more likely to suffer subsequent poor mental health, according to a new survey.
Read more...NZ research uncovers abortion and mental health link (The New Zealand Herald)
Women who have an abortion are more likely to suffer subsequent poor mental health, according to a new survey. The University of Otago study found women who had an abortion faced a 30 per cent increase in the risk of developing common mental health problems such as depression and anxiety.
Read more...Study on link between abortion, mental health (Scoop.co.nz)
Women who have an abortion face a 30% increase in the risk of developing common mental health problems such as depression and anxiety, according to a new study from the University of Otago, Christchurch.
Read more...New Zealand Study Examines Link Between Abortion And Mental Health (Medical News Today)
Women who have an abortion face a small increase in the risk of developing common mental health problems such as depression and anxiety, according to a new study from New Zealand.
Read more...Bhopal disaster -an eye opener to units (Central Chronicle)
The 1984 gas leak in Bhopal, was a terrible tragedy that understandably continues to evoke strong emotions even 24 years later. On 3rd December 1984, poison gas leaked from a Union Carbide factory, killing thousands.
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