Abortion Essay -- Research Papers Aborting Essays Pregnancy

Abortion Women may have an abortion for a variety of reasons, but in general they choose abortion because a pregnancy at that time is in some way wrong for them. â€Å"Abortion is the removal of a fetus from the uterus before it is mature enough to live on its own† (Kuechler 1996). When this happens spontaneously we call it a miscarriage. Induced abortion is brought about deliberately by a medical procedure that ends pregnancy. Legal abortion, carried out by trained medical practitioners, is one of the most common and safest surgical procedures. â€Å"About 1.5 million American women choose to have induced abortions each year. Less than 1% of all abortion patients experience a major complication associated with the procedure† (Kuechler 1996). A medical abortion is one that is brought about by taking medications that will end a pregnancy. The alternative is surgical abortion, which ends a pregnancy by emptying the uterus or womb with special instruments. â€Å"A medical abortion is usually done without entering the uterus† (Nathanson 14). Either of two medications, methotrexate or mifepristone, can be used for medical abortion. â€Å"In September 2000, the Food and Drug Administration approved mifepristone for use in the U.S.†(Nathanson 16). Each of these medications is taken together with another medication, misoprostol, to induce an abortion. Before any abortion can be done, a medical professional must confirm that a woman is indeed pregnant and determine exactly how long she has been pregnant. The length of a pregnancy is usually measured by the number of days that have passed since the first day of the woman's last menstrual period. Medical abortions can be performed as early as a pregnancy can be confirm ed. In fact, â€Å"the shorter the time... ... J. & Weldon, J. (1999). When does life begin and 39 other tough questions about abortion. Tennessee:Wolgemuth & Hyatt Blackmun, J. Brennan, D., & Marshall, S. Roe vs Wade. Original matter copyright 1996,1997,1998,1999,2000 by the Abortion Law Homepage. Kuechler, A. (1996). Abortion statistics. Morbidity and Morality Weekly Report, 43(50) 19-32 Retreived April 20, 2004 from Center for Disease Control & Prevention database. Nathanson, B. & Ostling, R. (1999). Aborting America. New York:Pinnacle. Robinson, B. (1998, July). Parental consent/notification for teen abortions:pro and con. Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. 14(7) 12-17. Retrieved April 18, 2004 from EBSCO database. Robinson, B. (2002, October). Why do women seek to have an abortion? Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. 18(4) 4-9. Retrieved April 18, 2004 from EBSCO database.