Unsafe abortion

Unsafe abortions are defined as procedures for terminating a pregnancy that are “performed by persons lacking the necessary information or skills, in an environment lacking minimal medical standards, or both.” These include self-induced abortions, abortions in unhygienic conditions, and abortions performed by medical practitioners who do not provide appropriate post-abortion attention. About 45% of the 73 million abortions each year are considered unsafe, amounting to about 33 million unsafe abortions.

Most (97%) unsafe abortions occur in the developing world, where modern birth control is not readily available, and affordable, well-trained medical practitioners are scarce, and abortion is often illegal, with the more restrictive the law, the higher the rates of death and other complications.

Unsafe abortions are one of the leading causes of death during pregnancy and childbirth, accounting for about 5–13% of deaths during this period. This number is likely an underestimate given the stigma against and likely misclassification of unsafe abortion. In the developing world alone, unsafe abortions result in complications for about 7 million women a year.