Abortion: Does it affect your fertility and future pregnancies? Possible health risks

New Delhi: For many couples, deciding whether or not to terminate a pregnancy - an abortion - can be very difficult.

There are many reasons why women consider an abortion - inability to support or care for a child, unintended pregnancy, contraceptive failure, pregnancy complications, etc.

The Supreme Court had on Monday allowed a Mumbai-based woman, who is in her 24th week of pregnancy, to undergo termination of the foetus as it does not have a skull.

The bench, while taking into consideration the report of medical board of King Edward Memorial hospital in Mumbai which suggested that the foetus would not be able to survive without the skull, allowed the 22-year-old woman to terminate her pregnancy.

While abortions are considered generally safe if they're carried out as early as possible in pregnancy, there are some physical as well as mental risks associated with an abortion. These include:

• Infection of the womb
• Damage to the womb
• Excessive bleeding/vaginal bleeding during early pregnancy
• Preterm birth
• Low birth weight
• Placenta problems
• Mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, etc.

Generally, it is believed that having an abortion won't affect your chances of getting conceived and having normal pregnancies in the future. However, a womb infection, if not treated promptly, can affect your fertility and future pregnancies. The infection could result in pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) – a life-threatening condition that can increase the risk of infertility or ectopic pregnancy. Ectopic pregnancy is a complication of pregnancy in which the fertilised eggs implants outside the uterus.

If you've had an abortion or are planning to have one, talking to your doctor about possible risks can help avert certain health complications.