Types of Abortion

Termination of pregnancy (or Abortion) is generally defined as the delivery or loss of products of conception before the 20th week of conception.

A termination of pregnancy may be spontaneous (also known as a miscarriage) or induced (also known as an abortion). Delivery between the 20th and 38th week is considered a pre-term (or premature) birth.

Categories of Termination of Pregnancy

Early abortion is the one that occurs before the 12th week whereas late abortion is the category that occurs between the 12th and 20th week.

Spontaneous abortion (or miscarriage) is the clinical entity, which occurs without any intervention. An important cause for spontaneous abortion is the anti-phospholipid syndrome, which is found in about 25% percent of women who have had three or more spontaneous abortions.

Another category is threatened abortion, where the process of abortion starts but it can still be reversed to recovery and continuation of gestation is possible.

Inevitable abortion is the one where the changes have progressed to such a state from where further continuation of pregnancy is not possible.

Complete abortion occurs when the entire products of conception are expelled out of the uterus as such. Incomplete abortion is where the evacuation of the uterine contents is only partial. It is the commonest type of abortion for which most of the women get hospitalized and may require subsequent D&C.

Missed abortion (or silent miscarriage / early foetal demise) occurs when the foetus is dead but is retained in the uterus for 4 weeks or longer.

Septic abortion is any abortion, which is associated with the clinical evidence of infection of uterus or its contents.

Habitual abortion (or recurrent miscarriage) means occurrence of three or more consecutive miscarriages. Habitual abortion is often due to some gross chromosomal abnormalities in the foetus. The mother is otherwise healthy.

Induced abortion is the one, which is performed deliberately for elective reasons.