Induced abortion potential among Indian women

Abstract

Information on abortion is limited and inaccurate especially in the developing world, which has led to several speculations on the prevalence of abortion in this region. A rise in prevalence of abortion is mostly accounted for in terms of increase in the prevalence of induced abortions, which reflects on the reproductive health of women. With the growing concern for reproductive health of women, the study of abortion phenomenon has drawn serious attention of researchers world wide. In such circumstances, this is an attempt to assess the induced abortion potential among Indian women by utilising information on proportion of unwanted and ill-timed pregnancies obtained through National Family Health Survey, India. This exercise may facilitate a better understanding of the exact prevalence of induced abortion which necessarily should be less than the estimated potential depending on the levels of unwanted and illtimed fertility.