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Abortion

Kevin Romero

Faculty of Physical Education, Recreation and Sports, University of Pamplona

162003_17 Communication Skills

Leidy Patricia Bautista Aldana

March 14, 2021

Summary

Termination of pregnancy, painful interruption of the physiological process of pregnancy, causing

the interruption and death of the fetus inside and outside the fetus, before its 80 days of management, the

The definition of pregnancy before delivery is called 'preterm birth'. It is said that abortion is

complete when the fetus is expelled from the placentas and membranes, it is sometimes difficult to know if it is

Did the fetus expel or not given that the fetus is not the only one that suffers alterations? Abortion can be

both spontaneous and induced, fetuses expelled with less than 0.5 kg or at 20 weeks are

considered abortion.

Introduction

Nowadays, this process is carried out countless times around the world, both legally and

illegally, many adolescents without prior knowledge of the process and without consulting a

specialists undergo this procedure without knowing the consequences that may affect their

long-term health. Abortion can be a type of extinction for babies, many teenagers.

They do it for their reasons, but it does not justify that it is a type of murder against a being that does not

has any guilt even though that debate is another matter.

The topic

The life of the woman is the most affected in this process, since they decide if

to do it or not. Nowadays there are many contraceptive methods since it is incredible

how despite that multiple abortions are still being carried out to this day, which leads to

playing with the lives of several women,

With this work, I am not defining my position on what the absolute truth is.

it is not about whether it is good or bad for the community, it is simply a research/query about
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of the entire concept that refers to abortion (definition, types of abortion, history, characteristics and

social impact) providing a description of each aspect of each one.

Method

Several websites, virtual books, and authors with reliable information were cited for

provide high-quality information to the work.

Results

History

We can say that abortion has existed since the beginnings of humanity. In ancient

In Egypt, the first abortions in history began, these are recorded in the

Ebers Papyrus written around 1500 BC contains preparations that caused the

interruption of pregnancy. Various foods were used for this process: acacia fruit without

maturity, crushed onions, and dates with honey, while the Kahun Papyrus suggests the

crocodile excrement to prevent pregnancy and also suitable for abortion.

Elsewhere, materials for performing abortions have been found in excavations.

belonging to China, Persia, and India. In the Greco-Roman Empire of the 3rd century, there was no

It was not considered a crime or offense, according to (Giulia Galeotti) who says 'it was an exclusively matter

of women,” and according to (Socrates) he says “he considered it a maternal right: men did not have

voice in these matters.” Abortion was established across all social classes, in few

words, was accepted in the moral.

According to the Stoic philosopher (Epictetus), he stated "It is wrong to call the statue copper in

"state of fusion and man to the fetus." In ancient Roman texts, written by Pliny the Elder,
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Talk about some plants that serve as methods of abortion, such as savory and silphium. Also

it referred to surgical procedures. According to the Greek Historian (Konstantinos

Kapparis states "abortion was practiced by a midwife and on some occasions by the

own pregnant woman. But almost never by doctors" (Abortion in the ancient world), what

it indicated that it was a tradition and did not enter the institutional realm.

With the passage of time and the emergence of Christianity, abortion was considered an act

sinful. In the Hebrew world it was prohibited because its intent was to populate the earth to

defending one's own survival and the divine presence, fertility was considered as a

blessing of the Lord and constituted a horror. The controversies surrounding this situation have resonated

for centuries and state policies have taken a voice against bodies and autonomy

female. Non-secular countries are the most interested in legalizing abortion because it is considered

a sin. On the contrary, secular countries have shown to be supporters of legal and safe abortion.

legislation that criminalizes voluntary interruption of pregnancy became the motto of the

expropriation of the body and female identity.

Abortion in the 19th century. On the eve of the 19th century, the United States raised methods for

avoid unwanted pregnancies, but also expressed his opinion on the matter. Quickly, he

they published news about the sale of the abortion pill. Back then, the fetus was not

I considered a person only until the fifth month of pregnancy. The situation began to change.

after the second half of the 19th century when this practice began to be prohibited by

moral and religious issues. By 1900, it was illegal, except in cases where the mother's life

danger ran.
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From 1950 to 1960, illegal abortions reached the figure of 200,000 to 1.2 million per year.

Subsequently, this situation created several movements that rose up against it and demanded the

legalization of abortion. In 1973, it was legalized under certain conditions. The issue reached such a state

critical that the authorized clinics to perform abortions were attacked multiple times by

fear of armed attacks by pro-life extremists. Currently, abortions are guaranteed

for public health insurance. There are 6 abortions performed for every 1000 women aged 15 to 44.

Other countries like Argentina have fostered a large pro-abortion movement, known

like the Green Tide, mostly composed of women and feminist women. These have been

victims of violent attacks on the streets of Argentina committed by pro-life or movements

Fascists. On the other hand, there are countries where abortion is completely illegal.

and it is considered a crime, these are: El Salvador, Dominican Republic,

Malta and the Vatican.

Definition

According to the WHO (World Health Organization), abortion is defined as

the interruption of pregnancy when the fetus is not yet viable outside the womb. It is when

the pregnancy is interrupted and ends prematurely and the fetus cannot survive outside the

mother's womb. This interruption can occur naturally, involuntarily, or

voluntary, when deliberate measures are taken to end the pregnancy.

Characteristics

Abortion is the death of the product of conception at any moment of

pregnancy.
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The legal medical concept of abortion is the violent termination of pregnancy.

regardless of the gestation time.

In forensic medicine, two diagnostic problems arise: the first is to establish an abortion in

woman alive, and the second, to reach the same conclusion in an autopsy.

In a living woman, it must be done quickly, because the restoration of the menstrual cycle.

it will have erased all stigma in a few days.

The forensic medical diagnosis of abortion is made by the finding of the different phenomena mentioned in

this Blog and when it is found or demonstrates the presence of a foreign body in the uterine cavity.

In Colombia, abortion is not legal, and therefore methods such as injections of hypertonic substances of the

uterine cavity, through the abdominal wall, scraping, vacuum extraction or application of prostaglandins are

Illegally, there is already a very common substance in Colombia for performing an abortion called Misoprostol or Citotec.

Types

Types of Abortion. It is possible to classify different types of abortion in

function of different criteria, such as whether it is natural or induced, the mechanisms

employees to interrupt the pregnancy or the reasons that cause its realization.
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Spontaneous abortion. Spontaneous abortion is referred to as that type of abortion or

interruption of pregnancy due to natural causes, not being voluntary or induced. It can

due to chromosomal alterations of the fetus, diseases or malformations of the mother,

infections (such as in septic abortion). The occurrence of this type of abortion usually happens in the

twelve first weeks.

When it is given in a very initial way so that we are not yet facing a fetus.

Before an embryo, symptoms may not present themselves and the fact of having gone unnoticed can even happen.

become pregnant (it is estimated that a large number of pregnancies end like this without being

detected).

However, if the detachment or death of the fetus occurs during development

of the fetus usually occurs along with significant bleeding and pain in the uterus, which opens to

making way for the remains. In some cases, the remains of the fetus are not completely expelled.

especially if they are late-term abortions), in which case it will be necessary to carry out an intervention.

Abortion due to infection or septic. It is a subtype of abortion in which a

infection that affects the placenta or fetus and ends with the death of the latter. It also

it refers to the result of an abortion in which the female reproductive system undergoes a

infection due to the presence of remnants from an abortion or due to injuries resulting from the procedure

one.

Failed or retained abortion. It is a type of natural abortion in which for some reason

the fetus in gestation dies naturally, but remains in the mother's womb for weeks

without being expelled by the woman's body. The pregnant woman continues to believe she is pregnant and has

the typical symptoms, but however the heartbeat of the fetus has stopped. It is solely
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It is possible to detect it through ultrasound. After detection, if the body has not expelled the fetus or has not...

It will be completely necessary to intervene with drugs or surgically.

Induced abortion. It is about the abortion deliberately caused, that is to say the result of

voluntarily apply certain procedures to interrupt the pregnancy.

from this, others can be found such as the therapeutic one, those that are the result of rape or the

that they decide freely.

Therapeutic abortion. Therapeutic abortion is referred to as that which is carried out under the assumption

that pregnancy poses a risk to the health and even the survival of the mother.

Those abortions that are performed in the presence of are also called by the same name.

serious alterations or diseases of the fetus that make its survival or development impossible

regulatory.

Legal abortion. In reference to voluntary abortions, legal abortion is considered that

what can be carried out according to current legislation. Although originally it could only be aborted

legal way in cases of rape, severe deformities or risk to the life of the

pregnant, currently in many countries abortion can be legally performed without the need for

these assumptions are met (albeit within a specific time frame that varies depending on the

region.

In Spain, abortion is free up to fourteen weeks and thereafter it can only be done

to be interrupted legally in cases of risk to the life of the pregnant woman, anomalies in the fetus

serious and/or incompatible with life or certain diseases or malformations.

Illegal abortion. It refers to the set of abortions that are carried out outside the law.

in secrecy. This type of abortion not only constitutes a crime but also poses a serious risk to health.
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from the pregnant woman, due to the lack of any guarantee regarding the procedure and

conditions of the intervention to be carried out.

Early abortion. It refers to the interruption of pregnancy that occurs before the...

twelve weeks.

Late abortion. That abortion in which the interruption occurs after twelve

weeks of gestation.

Abortion by mechanical/surgical means. It refers to the type of induced abortion in

that the interruption method is mechanical, removing the fetus through procedures such as

the aspiration, scraping, or injection of substances that cause burns to the fetus and

they cause death.

Chemical or pharmacological abortion. Chemical abortion is the type of abortion induced in which

provides the pregnant woman with certain medications in order to terminate the pregnancy. It usually

considered safer than surgical.

Complete abortion. It is understood as that abortion in which the contents are expelled or removed.

the complete biological remains of the fetus and placenta.

Incomplete abortion. In incomplete abortion, part of the fetus or the products of the

gestation remains inside the uterus, leaving remnants inside. It can be induced or

natural (in this last case, it tends to be more frequent the further along the pregnancy is before its

interruption).
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