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Abortion surveillance--United States, 2001
Lilo T Strauss1, Joy Herndon, Jeani Chang
1Division of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Surveillance Summaries (Washington, D.C. : 2002)
|November 25, 2004
Summary
Legal induced abortions in the US saw a slight decrease in 2001, with the abortion ratio increasing slightly. Data show most abortions occurred in younger, unmarried women, with early gestational ages being most common.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Demography
- Reproductive Health
Background:
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has monitored legal induced abortions since 1969.
- Surveillance aims to document the number and characteristics of women undergoing legal abortions.
- Understanding trends in abortion is crucial for public health initiatives.
Purpose of the Study:
- To summarize and describe data on legal induced abortions in the United States for 2001.
- To analyze trends in abortion numbers, ratios, and rates.
- To describe the characteristics of women obtaining abortions and gestational ages.
Main Methods:
- Data were voluntarily reported to the CDC from reporting areas across the United States.
- The report includes data from 49 reporting areas for 2001.
- Analysis involved comparing data from previous years and examining demographic and procedural details.
Main Results:
- A total of 853,485 legal induced abortions were reported in 2001, a 0.5% decrease from 2000.
- The abortion ratio slightly increased to 246 per 1,000 live births, while the abortion rate remained stable at 16 per 1,000 women aged 15-44.
- Most abortions were obtained by unmarried women (82%), white women (55%), and those under 25 (52%).
- The majority of abortions (59%) occurred at or before 8 weeks' gestation, with a trend towards earlier procedures.
- Medical abortions accounted for 2.9% of procedures in reporting areas.
Conclusions:
- Legal induced abortion numbers have shown a gradual decline since 1990 and a slight decrease between 1996-2001.
- Abortion surveillance data are essential for understanding women's reproductive health and informing policy.
- The data support the improvement of women's and infants' health and well-being.