For sure you have heard about it before, but it is possible that you would like to have more information on abortion. It is a medical procedure during which the pregnancy is intentionally ended, that has been legal in the U. S. since 1973.
Why should you know facts about abortion?
One of the most difficult decisions of a woman’s life is whether she should have an abortion. Usually this happens because she doesn’t have the possibilities to raise a child, her life is threatened by the pregnancy or because the child will get born with abnormalities.
No matter why you are thinking about what is abortion, you should have pre-abortion counseling before having the procedure.
The stage of the pregnancy
Before performing the procedure, the doctor should know about the stage of pregnancy of the patient.
When it comes to facts about abortion, you can be sure that your doctor will ask you questions about your menstrual cycles, and you will have a physical examination. You can have it right before the procedure is done.
In case we are referring to a patient under the age of 18, a court order or the consent of the parents is required.
The first trimester
In case you would like to find out some information on abortion, you should know that about 90 percent of all abortions are performed in the first trimester. This means the first 13 weeks of the pregnancy. It is the safest period to have the procedure. Nonetheless there are some cases when second trimester abortions are unavoidable.
Regarding facts about abortion it is important to know that genetic testing can be done only after the first 16 weeks in some cases. It is possible that some of the women don’t even realize that they are pregnant until the end of the first trimester.
The procedures done after this time are more likely to result in complications. When asking what is abortion you should know that having an abortion after the 24th week is very rare, and it happens only in case the life of the patient is threatened by the pregnancy.
Complications
In case you are interested in information on abortion, you should know that in case the procedure is done in the first trimester, the possibility of complications is reduced. Nonetheless about 2.5% of the women experience minor complications, and only 0.5% experience complications that require hospitalization. It is an important fact about abortion that as the pregnancy progresses, the chances of complications also increase.
Costs
If you are wondering about this procedure it is very likely that you are also interested in the expenses. In case you have it at an early stage, the typical costs are of about $200-$400. If you have it later, the expenses increase because of the increased risks, anesthesia, related services and possible hospital stay.
When considering what is abortion, you should know that in the majority of the cases health insurance doesn’t cover abortion and it cannot be used for elective abortion.
