1409Legal abortion in the context of the COVID-19: a literature review focusing on Latin America

Abstract

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic changed the functioning of several health services. This work aimed to understand how different countries, especially Latin Americans, dealt with legal abortion ones.MethodsNarrative review on abortion and COVID-19 from January 1st, 2020 to March 10th, 2021. Databases searched included MEDLINE (through LitCOVID), Global Index Medicus, Virtual Health Library, and Journal Storage, complemented by gray literature.ResultsOf the 668 documents found, 111 were duplicated. After thematic screening, 75 were included. The vast majority reinforced the importance of abortion as a reproductive right and the maintenance of abortion services during the pandemic as essentials. Medical protocols without prior testing and supported by telemedicine were proposed to respect the distance measures. The pandemic amplified existing problems and restricted access to sexual and reproductive health services, such as legal abortion. This impact may be even stronger in low- and middle-income countries, especially in Latin America, where access to legal abortion is usually restricted. However, empirical peer-reviewed studies in this region are still scarce.ConclusionsLatin American countries must place reproductive rights as a priority on their agendas and adapt legislation to accommodate alternative models of abortion care, or else they are at risk of increasing rates of unsafe abortions and maternal mortality, especially among the most vulnerable women.Key messagesMaintaining legal abortion services during the pandemic is essential, at the risk of increasing maternal mortality, especially in contexts where access to these services is already restricted, such as in Latin America.