ARTICLE OF ABORTION

Abortion is the ending of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus

before it can survive outside the uterus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as
a miscarriage or spontaneous abortion. When deliberate steps are taken to end a pregnancy, it is
called an induced abortion, or less frequently "induced miscarriage". The unmodified word
abortion generally refers to an induced abortion. A similar procedure after the fetus has potential
to survive outside the womb is known as a "late termination of pregnancy" or less accurately as a
"late term abortion".

When properly done, abortion is one of the safest procedures in medicine, but unsafe
abortion is a major cause of maternal death, especially in the developing world. Making safe
abortion legal and accessible reduces maternal deaths. It is safer than childbirth, which has a 14
times higher risk of death in the United States.In contrast, unsafe abortions (those performed by
unskilled individuals, with hazardous equipment, or in unsanitary facilities) cause 47,000 deaths
and 5 million hospital admissions each year.

Around 56 million abortions are performed each year in the world, with about 45% done
unsafely. Abortion rates changed little between 2003 and 2008, before which they decreased for
at least two decades as access to family planning and birth control increased. As of 2018, 37% of
the world's women had access to legal abortions without limits as to reason.

Spontaneous abortions, or miscarriages, occur for many reasons, including disease,

trauma, genetic defect, or biochemical incompatibility of mother and fetus. Occasionally a fetus
dies in the uterus but fails to be expelled, a condition termed a missed abortion. Induced
abortions may be performed for reasons that fall into four general categories: to preserve the life
or physical or mental well-being of the mother; to prevent the completion of a pregnancy that has
resulted from rape or incest; to prevent the birth of a child with serious deformity, mental
deficiency, or genetic abnormality; or to prevent a birth for social or economic reasons (such as
the extreme youth of the pregnant female or the sorely strained resources of the family unit).
Numerous medical techniques exist for performing abortions, example endometrial
aspiration, suction, or curettage may be used to remove the contents of the uterus. Modern
methods use medication or surgery for abortions. The drug mifepristone in combination with
prostaglandin appears to be as safe and effective as surgery during the first and second trimester
of pregnancy. The most common surgical technique involves dilating the cervix and using a
suction device.

In general, the more advanced the pregnancy, the greater the risk to the female of
mortality or serious complications following an abortion. Women seeking an abortion may use
unsafe methods, especially when abortion is legally restricted. They may attempt self-induced
abortion or seek the help of a person without proper medical training or facilities. This can lead
to severe complications, such as incomplete abortion, sepsis, hemorrhage, and damage to internal
organs. Unsafe abortions are a major cause of injury and death among women worldwide.

The public debate of the issue has demonstrated the enormous difficulties experienced by
political institutions in grappling with the complex and ambiguous ethical problems raised by the
question of abortion. Proponents of liberalized regulation of abortion hold that only a woman
herself, rather than the state, has the right to manage her pregnancy and that the alternative to
legal, medically supervised abortion is illegal and demonstrably dangerous, if not deadly,
abortion.

There are no international or multinational treaties that deal directly with abortion but
human rights law touches on the issues. In the 2010 case of A, B and C v Ireland, the European
Court of Human Rights found that the European Convention on Human Rights did not include a
right to an abortion. In 2005 the United Nations Human Rights Committee ordered Peru to
compensate a woman (known as K.L.) for denying her a medically indicated abortion; this was
the first time a United Nations Committee had held any country accountable for not ensuring
access to safe, legal abortion, and the first time the committee affirmed that abortion is a human
right.