A Global Review of Laws on Induced Abortion, 1985-1997

Abstract

A global trend toward liberalization of abortion laws observed before 1985 appears to have continued in more recent years. Nevertheless, women's ability to obtain abortion services is affected not just by the laws in force in a particular country, but also by how these laws are interpreted, how they are enforced and what the attitude of the medical community is toward abortion.

Subcomponents of Vitamine B Complex Regulate the Growth and Development of Human Brain Derived Cells

“…Human embryos were obtained from elective abortions with the informed consent of the women seeking abortion. Moreover, as a biomaterial there were used only fetuses with the ages of formation not more than 12 weeks [14].…”

Second trimester abortion laws globally: actuality, trends and recommendations

“…This contrasts with 54 countries that allow abortion on request only in the first trimester. 21 Four of the ten do not set upper time limits on second trimester abortions. Sweden specifies 18 weeks, Singapore 24 weeks, and the Netherlands and the United States "viability," but all allow some abortions on specific grounds after that.…”

“…At least 30 countries have significantly expanded indications for abortion. 20,21 These include Albania, Bhutan, Botswana, Cambodia, Colombia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Ghana, Guyana, Indonesia, Monaco, Nepal, Portugal, Saint Lucia, South Africa, Spain, Swaziland, Switzerland and Thailand. Five West African Francophone countries liberalised their abortion laws by means of comprehensive reproductive health legislation as well, and Kenya's new Constitution, approved by referendum in August 2010, allows abortion on grounds of life and health and leaves open the possibility that a law could subsequently be *Medical abortion here means first and second trimester abortion with a combination of mifepristone and misoprostol or with misoprostol alone.…”

“…Almost all of these changes affect the legal status of second trimester abortions, whether by increasing indications for abortion without setting upper time limits, by endorsing specific indications for abortion with time limits, or both. 20,21 In addition, many countries have registered the use of mifepristone and/or misoprostol for inducing abortion, often only for the first nine weeks of pregnancy, 53,54 but off-label use in the second trimester is common, (Beverly Winikoff, Expanding access through off-label use of medical abortion, conference presentation, March 2010), 1 e.g. in Great Britain and the US, and across Scandinavia.…”

“…Although there is a substantial body of academic literature on the legality of abortion in various countries, most of it focuses on the lawfulness of abortion in the first trimester. [20][21][22][23][24][25][26] Analyses of the legality of abortion often do not specify indications or requirements for abortions performed later in pregnancy. This paper focuses on the legality of the procedure in the second trimester and is based, in all but a few cases, on the exact wording of the specific laws and, when available, in regulations for some 191 countries for which information is available.…”