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  • Title: The advent of legal abortion and surgical abortion techniques.
    Author: Wilson PT.
    Journal: Med Trial Tech Q; 1976; 22(3):241-78. PubMed ID: 1032393.
    Abstract:
    The 4 principle abortion techniques are 1) dilation and curettage (D and C), 2) vacuum aspiration, 3) amniocentesis (saline injection), and 4) hysterotomy. The curettage and vacuum methods are used in the first trimester of pregnancy. Both require dilation of the cervix. The fetal material is removed with a curette or suction applied to the uterine wall. First trimester abortions usually do not require hospitalization. No abortion should be performed between 12-14 weeks. After 14 weeks, ideally 20 weeks, amniocentesis is the preferred method. It is a more complicated procedure involving removal of amniotic fluid and replacement with hypertonic saline solution, resulting in fetal death and expulsion. Oxytocin may also be used to induce labor. Reported complications run from 5-15% Hospitalization is up to 48 hours. A hysterotomy requires exposure of the uterus by a surgical opening in the abdomen. The uterus is opened and fetal material delivered. Once a hysterotomy is performed, all other pregnancies must be delivered by caesarean section. The psychological considerations of abortion have not been carefully studied under the new laws. No clear consensus exists as to the psychological aftereffect of abortion. If a woman desires an abortion and does not receive one, there is a likelihood of psychological effects, as for a woman who does not desire an abortion and receives one. Conflict occurs only when a woman is not sure of her own decision. Moral considerations imposed by abortion service personnel will also set up a conflict for the patient. The abortion seeker must know her own attitudes regarding the sanctity of life and her social role as a woman and be psychologically prepared to actually arrange for the operation.
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