Termination of pregnancy for fetal anomaly: a population-based study 1995 to 2004

Terminations of pregnancy for fetal anomaly (TOPFAs) were analysed over a 10-year period from a population-based congenital anomaly register covering 646,342 births. A total of 3189 cases of TOPFA were identified, prevalence of 49.3 per 10,000 registerable births. The rate of TOPFA at all gestations and at less than 16 weeks increased significantly. There were 102 cases of liveborn TOPFAs (3.2%). The proportion of liveborn TOPFAs after 22 weeks of gestation decreased significantly but below 22 weeks remains unchanged. TOPFA is increasing in frequency, occurring earlier in pregnancy. Live birth is a possible important outcome.