Abortion Essay, Research Paper

ABORTION

There are many ways to deal with pregnancy and judging by modern standards of right and wrong many issues dealing and relating to this are heavily debated on. A woman/mother-to-be in today?s society has many choices for her and her unborn child. Of course the first would be to keep the child and raise him/her, another would be to have the child put up for adoption when he/she is born, and last an abortion. The mother or parents have to make up their minds in what is best for them and the unborn baby. This chose leads many people to their political standing, morals, and their age to make this important choice. Many do choose to keep, some are for adoption, and the rest are pro-abortion. Being pro-abortion means you understand what an abortion is, what goes on, and when it still can and is best to be done.

In today?s world many people believe they know what abortion is, just a precise surgical procedure, but do they read through the lines to know what really goes on. There are many pre-abortion procedures done by the doctor to insure no complications take place during and after the abortion is preformed. A pelvic examination is done to assess the size of the uterus and the unborn child. Next, there is an interview done to determine how far along into the pregnancy the woman is by figuring out when her last menstrual cycle took place. This is important for the doctor to know so they are prepared on how to perform the procedure and how difficult it might be. Since there are different ways to perform an abortion depending on what trimester the woman is in. A current medical history is taken to identify ongoing conditions, such as asthma, epilepsy, and diabetes, which might change the way the abortion is done and or the anesthetic that is used.

An abortion that is preformed early within 12 weeks of the last menstrual cycle is called a first-trimester abortion and are the safest and simplest. During the first trimester an abortion is preformed called the vacuum aspiration, sometimes called aspiration and curettage or suction curettage. The procedure is usually done with first, an injection of a local anesthetic into the cervix, this is where the uterus joins the vagina. The physician then gradually widens the numbed cervix by inserting and removing a line of narrow metal rods, each a little bigger than the one that was inserted before. This is done with a blunt-tipped end of a tube called a cannula, is inserted into the uterus the widened cervix. The other end of the cannula is attached to a small vacuum pump, and the stuff inside of the uterus is removed by the suction. After the cannula is removed a spoon looking tool, called a curette is used to clean the uterine lining and remove any tissue that might remain.

The second-trimester, 13th-20th week, abortions become much more hard to do. The techinque used to perform this abortion is one similar to the vacumm aspiration called dilation and evacuation. As in a first-trimester abortuion the cervix is numbed and then dilated. The dilator, made of seaweed called laminar or hygroscopic gel, is inserted and left for several hours. The dilator absorbs the fluids and gradually expands to widen the cervix. When the dilator is taken out, the contents of the uterus are drawn out through a tube by suction. Forceps and a curette are used to take out any of the tissue from the uterus still there.

Late in the second-trimester, 16th-20th week, a procedure brings about labor, so that the abortion happens through the natural process of delivery. This is usually carried out in one of two ways.

The first being an instillation method. A needle is passed through the woman?s numbed stomache and into the uterus, and into the sack containing the unborn baby. This will bring about the death of the child within an hour or two.

The second is inducing labor. With this a very premature stillborn baby is ?born?.

Early third trimester abortions, 24th-28th weeks, are done by instillation or a hysterotomy. This is only preformed when they are medically recommended and or necessary: an example, when continuation of pregnancy becomes a threat to the life or well being of the woman or severe genetic mutation in the baby is certain.

After an abortion is preformed it takes about two to three weeks for the cervix to fully close up and heal. The woman should also use maxi pads instead of tampons, refrain from douching, and take showers instead of baths. Strenuous activity also should be avoided for several weeks. Sexual intercourse should be avoided for that period of time. Also getting pregnant again can happen in as little as two weeks after the abortion, even before she has her next period. Antibiotics might also be needed for a few days after the abortion especially if the procedure was done during the second-trimester of pregnancy. As a result of an abortion there are a few complications that could happen: such as unusually high temperature, unusual vaginal drainage or discharge, or excessive vaginal bleeding. Excessive bleeding is a large problem and the woman should talk to her doctor at the clinic or hospital immediately.

Staying in the hospital or clinic over night for most first trimester abortions is not likely. They are dealt with as outpatient procedures. For second trimester abortions the woman is more at risk for problems so an over night stays might be necessary to look out for complications.

An abortion is can fail to end a pregnancy but it is only on average of once in every five hundred procedures. This happens the most often when the pregnancy is a multiple birth or if the pregnancy is ectopic, occurring outside the uterus.

Abortion is a very heated issue in the United States. The United State?s government stands with this in regard to a woman?s right to have an abortion: The federal government does not have an expressed policy concerning abortion. But in 1973 the Supreme Court ruled that during the first six months of pregnancy having and abortion was a woman?s right, and that it was a private matter to be decided by the woman and her physician. The court also gave states the right to intervene after six months to protect a viable life. The court?s decision was a judgement regarding a person?s constitutional right, but in is not an official US government policy.

Abortion is a heated issue and will continue to be one as long as people are nieve about what it really is, ?killing?.

Bibliography

I’m a sophore in highschool, I got an a on this paper for health class.