Do women presenting for first and second-trimester abortion differ socio-demographically?

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Health
• Demographic Studies
• Public Health

Background:

• Socio-demographic factors influence timing of abortion care.
• Understanding differences in presentation timing is crucial for targeted interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify socio-demographic differences between women presenting for first-trimester versus second-trimester abortions.
• To determine if late (second-trimester) abortion seekers differ demographically from early (first-trimester) seekers.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 4 years of data from a tertiary teaching hospital in India.
• Compared 84 second-trimester abortion cases with age-matched first-trimester cases.
• Collected data on age, parity, education, employment, husband's education, family expenditure, and religion.
• Statistical analysis using logistic regression.

Main Results:

• Second-trimester abortions constituted 2% of all abortions.
• Women seeking second-trimester abortions were significantly older (P=0.03), had higher parity (P=0.02), and higher educational status (P=0.04).
• No significant association found with occupation, husband's education, family expenditure, or religion.

Conclusions:

• Second-trimester abortions are linked to increased maternal age, parity, and higher education levels.
• Educated, older, and multiparous women are a key demographic for counseling to mitigate risks of later-term abortions.