Physical
Complications
Despite
the use of local anesthesia, a full 97% of women having abortions reported experiencing
pain during the procedure, which more than a third described as "intense,"
"severe" or "very severe." Compared to other pains, researchers
have rated the pain from abortion as more painful than a bone fracture, about the same as
cancer pain, though not as painful as an amputation. Studies
also reveal that younger women tend to find abortion more painful than do older adults, and that patients typically found
abortion more painful than their doctors or
counselors expected. The use of more powerful general anesthetics can reduce the
pain, but significantly increases the risk of cervical injury or uterine perforation. Complications
such as these are common, as are bleeding, hemorrhage, laceration of the cervix, menstrual
disturbance, inflammation of the reproductive organs, bladder or bowel perforation,
and serious infection. Even
more harmful long term physical complications from abortion may surface later. For
example, overzealous currettage can damage the lining of the uterus and lead to permanent
infertility. Overall, women who have abortions face an increased risk of ectopic (tubal)
pregnancy and a more than doubled risk of future sterility. Perhaps most important of
all, the risk of these sorts of complications, along with risks of future miscarriage,
increase with each subsequent abortion. The
particular type and severity of complications depend a great deal on the experience of the
abortionist and the particular
abortion method used. Given that most
abortions are
performed at abortion clinics rather than by a woman’s regular ob-gyn, the doctor
performing the abortion is likely to be a stranger of whose skill and experience a woman
knows very little. Such things as an inadequate gynecologic examination prior to the
operation, the carelessness of the abortionist, or the retention of fetal and placental
tissue can all bring on complications. These kinds of complications can usually be treated
and generally subside (though not always), but few women ever return to the clinics for
crucial post-operative examinations. There
is strong evidence that abortion increases the risk of breast cancer. A study of more than
1,800 women appearing in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute in 1994 found
that overall, women having abortions increased their risk of getting breast cancer before
age 45 by 50%. For women under 18 with no previous pregnancies, having an abortion after
the 8th week increased the risk of breast cancer 800%. Women with a family history of
breast cancer fared even worse. All 12 women participating in the study who had abortions
before 18 and had a family history of breast cancer themselves got cancer before age 45. Of
course, death of the mother is the most serious of all complications. Over 200 women have
died from legal abortions since 1973. The risk of death increases according to the
duration of pregnancy and the complexity of the abortion technique employed. | 