Abortion

Abortion is the termination of pregnancy (expulsion of the embryo or fetus) in the period before birth, during which the embryo or fetus disappears. The exact definition of abortion according to the National Health Information System (Národní zdravotní informační systém = NZIS) item no. valid in the Czech Republic – is as follows:


 * 1) the fetus does not show any of the signs of life and its birth weight is less than 500 g. And also in the case that the birth weight cannot be determined, if the pregnancy is less than 22 weeks,
 * 2) a fetal egg without a fetus or the pregnant mucous membrane was removed from the woman's uterus.

Abortion also means the termination of an ectopic pregnancy or artificial termination of pregnancy carried out according to special regulations (Act on artificial termination of pregnancy).

Signs of life include the presence of a heartbeat, pulsation of the umbilical cord, breathing or any spontaneous movements.

Division

 * Spontaneous abortion – spontaneous abortion that occurs as a result of various unfavorable factors ( developmental defects, infections, etc.).
 * Induced abortion (interruption) – an abortion induced specifically at the wish of the pregnant woman or for health reasons (on the side of the fetus or on the side of the mother).
 * Missed abortion – a condition where the fetus (embryo) dies intrauterinely and is not expelled.

According to the phase in which the abortion is detected, we divide:


 * abortus imminens – imminent abortion, i.e. it is still possible to prevent the abortion of the fetus,
 * abortus incipiens – incipient abortion, similar to the 1st stage of labor, usually abortion cannot be prevented,
 * abortus completus – a complete abortion in which the entire fetus with the placenta and amniotic sac is expelled.

Abortion very often does not take place as a complete expulsion of the fetus and parts of the fetus, membranes or placenta remain retained in the uterine cavity. Such an abortion is referred to as abortus incompletus, i.e. incomplete abortion. It is necessary to remove the remaining parts of the fetal egg ( RCUI = revisio cavi uteri instrumentalis, manual revision...). Incomplete removal risks bleeding and infection in the uterine cavity.

Related Articles

 * Birth
 * Pregnancy
 * Main statistical indicators in obstetrics