The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated the fact sheet on Preventing Unsafe Abortion.

Background Information

Unsafe abortion occurs when a pregnancy is terminated

• either by persons lacking the necessary skills,
• or in an environment that does not conform to minimal medical standards,
• or both

Medical abortion is performed using drugs alone.

Surgical abortion is performed with a manual or electrical aspirator.

Key Messages:

An estimated 22 million unsafe abortions take place each year, almost entirely in developing countries.

Around 5 million women are hospitalized as a result of unsafe abortions each year.

Of the women who develop complications following unsafe abortion, more than 3 million women do not receive care.

In 2008, there were an estimated 47,000 deaths due to unsafe abortions, with almost 2/3rds occurring in Africa.

Women and adolescents with unwanted pregnancies resort to unsafe abortion when they cannot access safe abortion. Barriers to accessing safe abortion include:

• Restrictive laws
• Poor availability of services
• High cost
• Stigma
• Conscientious objection of health-care providers
• Unnecessary requirements that delay care

Complications of unsafe abortions include:

• Incomplete abortion (failure to remove/ expel all of the pregnancy tissue from the uterus)
• Haemorrhage (heavy bleeding)
• Infection
• Uterine perforation (caused when the uterus is pierced by a sharp object
• Damage to the genital tract and internal organs by inserting dangerous objects such as sticks, knitting needles, broken glass into the vagina or anus.
• Death due to one or more complications

Unsafe abortion can be prevented through

• Good sexual education
• Prevention of unintended pregnancy through use of effective contraception, including emergency contraception, and
• Provision of safe, legal abortion

Useful Links:

Link to the updated fact sheet:

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs388/en/

Link to the Clinical Practice Handbook for Safe Abortion:

http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/97415/1/9789241548717_eng.pdf