Depo Provera Essay, Research Paper

Internet Essay

Tue./Thurs. 11-12:30

In this essay I will adress four questions. Question one, What is a Clitorectomy. Question two, describe the problems with circumcision. Question three, Describe the procedure in a RU 486 abortion. Question four, Describe Depo Provera and it?s side effects.

A clitoridectomy, also referred to as excision, consists of the removal of the entire clitoris, both prepuce and glans, and the removal of the adjacent labia.

The problems associated with circumcision are as follows. Your baby doesn?t urinate normally within 4 to 6 hours after the circumcision. There is persistent bleeding. There is redness around the tip of the penis that will seems to be getting worse after 3 to 5 days. It may have a little yellow discharge or coating around the tip of the penis, but this should not last longer than a week. There are also good reasons why parents choose not to have their son circumcised. Circumcision may be more risky if done later in life. Parents should try to make a decision about circumcision before or soon after their son is born and not wait until later.

The answer to the third question is the description of a RU 486 abortion. The RU 486 procedure requires at least three trips to the abortion facility. In the first visit, the woman is given a physical exam, and if she has no obvious contra-indications (”red flags” such as smoking, asthma, high blood pressure, obesity, etc., that could make the drug deadly to her, she swallows the RU 486 pills. RU 486 blocks the action of progesterone, the natural hormone vital to maintaining the rich nutrient lining of the uterus. The developing baby starves as the nutrient lining disintegrates.

At a second visit 36 to 48 hours later, the woman is given a dose of artificial prostaglandins, usually misoprostol, which initiates uterine contractions and usually causes the embryonic baby to be expelled from the uterus. Most women abort during the 4-hour waiting period at the clinic, but about 30% abort later at home, work, etc., as many as 5 days later. A third visit about 2 weeks later determines whether the abortion has occurred or a surgical abortion is necessary to complete the procedure (5 to 10% of all cases).

There are several serious well documented side effects associated with RU 486/prostaglandin abortions, including prolonged (up to 44 days) and severe bleeding, nausea, vomiting, pain, and even death. At least one woman in France died while others there suffered life-threatening heart attacks from the technique. In U.S. trials conducted in 1995, one woman is known to have nearly died after losing half her blood and requiring emergency surgery.

Lastly, there is the answer to question four, What is Depo Provera and what are it?s side effects? Depo-Provera is a hormone very similar to that in the pill and minipill. It stops the releasing of an egg in a woman receiving the shot. Doctors often recommend that couples use back-up forms of birth control, because the failure rate among typical couples is 3 out of 1000. With Depo-Provera advantages include, the woman only has to go in to get a shot every 12 weeks; women lose less blood and have less menstrual cramping; it is safe for nursing mothers to receive the injections, preferably after the baby is six weeks old; and the injections may improve pms, depression, and other symptoms from endometriosis. The disadvantages of the Depo-Provera injections are as follows: irregular periods; weight gain; they may lower estrogen level and cause bone loss; rare allergic reactions; and the injections will not protect an individual from HIV or other infections. Injections can be given to you by your clinician, health department, or family planning clinic.