Epidemiology of hospitalized abortion in Valdivia, Chile
Guzmán Serani, R.; Martínez, C.; Puente, R.; Guzmán, S.
Revista Medica de Chile 109(11): 1099-1106
1981
ISSN/ISBN: 0034-9887 PMID: 7345525 Document Number: 181755
The impact of the Family Planning Program established in Valdivia in 1964 has been important in the decline of abortion and its rate/1000 women of fertile age during 1980 is the most remarkable in the last 21 years. Epidemiological characteristics of our patients, studied prospectively on standard forms prepared by the International Fertility Research Program, North Carolina, and used in all women hospitalized for abortion in the Regional Hospital of Valdivia over a 16-month period who were elected at random, shows that most of them were married legally or by common law. However, between unmarrieds, the possibility of an induced abortion is higher and 61.2% of them reported abortions induced outside the hospital, while among marrieds, this only occurred in 26.0%. Most of the women were well-educated, with the mean being 8.6 years; 11.3% had university educations, and only 3.1% were illiterate. The education and the number of living children (mean 1.7) does not appear to have a significant bearing on the likelihood of inducing illegal abortion and we believe that other events seem to be more significant at this time. More than 1/2 of the 218 women with induced abortions (54.5%) relapsed and there were 2 deaths as a result of complications of induced abortions performed outside the hospital. We emphasize the need for a revision of our programs and the adoption of some other type of health policy aimed at the global attention of unmarried women. (author's)