The Effects and Dangers of an Abortion

             An abortion is a medical term that refers to ending a pregnancy through a procedure that kills the unborn baby in a pregnant woman’s womb. Many women, annually, choose an abortion to terminate their pregnancy in order to prevent them from raising an unwanted child.  Abortions that are done legally are usually very safe as they are done by trained medical staff in hygienic surroundings, unlike “backstreet” abortions. However, even legal abortions that are done safely by trained professionals allow for many minor complications to occur in women after the abortion. Some women have stated that they had bled for the first month after the abortion, while some had gotten infections after the abortion which had to be treated with antibiotics. If these minor complications are not treated right away, they could become very serious and dangerous, especially ones involving infections.

Short-term health risks/effects

            There are many short-term health effects for women that get abortions. Firstly, a woman may experience acute hematometra. Acute hematometra occurs when the uterus fills with blood and blood clots, generally as a result of retained tissue after an abortion. Symptoms usually occur within an hour of the abortion, and include increasing lower abdominal cramping and an enlarged, tender uterus. Secondly, a woman can experience endometritis as a short-term health risk after an abortion. Endometritis is an infection of the uterine lining and is usually associated with preserved tissue. Endometritis can lead to toxic shock syndrome, which can be fatal. Next, a woman who has an abortion can be a victim of hemorrhaging. Hemorrhaging, or heavy bleeding, is one of the most common short-term health effects of abortion. Hemorrhaging is associated mostly with medical abortion and may be the result of incomplete abortion, or failure of the uterus to contract again following the abortion. Other short-term health risks/effects include uterine perforation and lacerations, disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), cervical lacerations and injury, gastro-intestinal disturbances (nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea), convulsions, saline poisoning (salt poisoning, hypernatremia), uterine rupture, embolism, anesthetic reactions, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), and morality.  

Long-term health risks/effects         

            Along with the minor and short-term health complications listed above, there are also several serious and long-term complications/effects that may occur in women after they have abortions. These risks usually increase depending on the number of abortions that a woman has had. One of the most serious dangers and effects associated with abortion is cancer. Women that have had abortions have twice the chance of getting breast cancer and have an increased chance of getting cervical, ovarian, and liver cancer. This is likely due to the disruption in natural hormonal changes that occur with pregnancies. Next, a woman that has had an abortion may have problems in future pregnancies. This results in an increased chance of pre-mature births in future pregnancies which is not good for babies. Provoked abortion has been found to increase pre-term birth (before 33 weeks after conception) and early pre-term birth (20-30 weeks after gestation) in future pregnancies. The risk increases with more abortions. Abortion can cause cervical damages that result in a useless cervix, which is a risk factor for pre-term birth. Furthermore, abortion frequently leads to cervical or uterine damage that can result in handicaps in a girl’s future infants. Also, an abortion procedure can damage a woman’s reproductive organs which can cause her to become sterile and infertile, thus, preventing her from having children in the future. Lastly, another long-term health risk/danger associated with abortion is death. This is a very rare risk as there is a death rate of one in every 100, 000- 200,000 procedures; however, it does sometimes occur and is usually because of hemorrhaging, infections, embolism, and complications from the administration of anesthesia during an abortion. This is one of the most fatal effects and dangers of an abortion, but it is also the one least likely to occur.   

Psychological health risks/effects  

            In addition, women who have had abortions and have experienced that procedure also experience several psychological effects that are not very pretty. Firstly, women who take part in abortions show higher levels of generalized anxiety when they are compared to women, who have carried a baby to term and have given birth to it. Anxiety is never healthy is not something anyone should be experiencing. Secondly, several women that go through with abortions are more likely to score in the high-risk range for clinical depression, than women who carried their babies to term. Around 20% of post-abortive women undergo some form of mild-depression, while around 10% of post-abortive women will experience persistent depression. Another psychological effect of an abortion is drug abuse. Women that experience abortions have been associated with an increased rate of substance abuse, especially young women. Young women who have aborted a child have a significantly high rate of drug dependence than young women who have never been pregnant, and pregnant young women who have given birth and carried to term. Next, a woman that has had an abortion may be subjected to post-traumatic stress disorder. Approximately one out of ten people are affected by this disorder and this disorder is usually caused by a “psychologically traumatic event,” such as seeing another person being killed. Symptoms of this disorder can be classified in three different categories. The first one involves re-living the event again in your head, the second one involves avoidance and emotional freezing, and the third category involves changes in sleeping patterns and increased alertness. One study found that at least 19% of women who have experienced an abortion have suffered from “post-traumatic stress disorder.” Moreover, women who have undergone an abortion can experience “loss of pleasure from intercourse, increased pain, hatred to sex and/or males in general, or the development of an immoral life-style. Finally, women who have experienced an abortion have an increased chance of suicidal thoughts and suicidal attempts. This is due to the fact that there are several mixed emotions associated with an abortion procedure that traumatize most women. Lastly, as with any death, the killer or in this case the woman that had the abortion suffers from the psychological effects of guilt. Women who have abortions usually feel guilty for killing their baby and their guilty conscience often drives them to insanity and usually suicide.