Free Abortion Research Articles

Clinical Geriatrics.

The number of aged people in our Westernized societies is increasing. It will continue to do so provided that a global holocaust does not prevent life on our earth and that a mental attitude towards what Sir William Osier called "the fixed period" is not allowed to prevail. There may be some dangers along this line in countries allowing free abortions and accordingly reducing respect for human life. Anyhow, a textbook dealing with disorders in old people has been needed. It may be said immediately that this volume represents an excellent aperçu of this topic and that it can be warmly recommended to every physician who has to deal with old people. (With the exception perhaps of the pediatricians, who has not?) The editor is Isadore Rossman, the distinguished medical director of the Montefiore Hospital in Bronx, NY. He has collected a distinguished staff of 34 collaborators; five are British,

Abortion and contraception in Sweden 1870–1970

The Swedish fecundity statistics show that birth control has been practised since 1870 at the latest, from 1910 to a growing extent, and since 1935 to a varying degree. The author has — as far as available statistics allowed — studied the different methods and their demographic effects, especially criminal abortions of former times using internal methods, and more modern criminal abortions using external means, legal abortions (since 1939), pessaries and condoms (which almost disappeared on account of the blockade during World War II), Oral contraception (from 1964) and IUDs (from 1966). The figures tell us that the Swedish people and the Swedish physicians during these last years have adopted a highly effective system of birth control by means of efficient contraceptives and — as safety valve — practically free legal abortion.

Use of contraception by young mothers in Copenhagen.

This paper consists of an edited translation of the greater part of an article by Dr Braestrup published in Ugeskr. Læger, 1970, 132, 232, under the title ‘Unge modres t'iden oni og benyttelse af antikonception’. In view of the current interest in young mothers, especially unmarried ones, and of the importance of Dr Braestrup's contribution to the subject, it seemed desirable to make available as widely as possible the information contained in her paper. The Executive Editor is grateful to Dr Braestrup for permission to re-publish it in English and for providing the translation.Summary Information about mothers under the age of 21 years in Copenhagen, in 1959 and 1968, was collected, reviewed and compared. The age distribution of the mothers was similar in the two surveys, but the fathers were younger in 1968. In that year, 84% of the married mothers had been pregnant before marriage; 90% of the married mothers and 35% of the unmarried ones had their own flats.Knowledge and use of suitable methods of contraception showed a considerable increase during the period. In 1968, 90% of the married mothers and about 62% of the unmarried mothers had made use of contraception before pregnancy. The great majority seeking advice had done so from general practitioners while others, before or after pregnancy, had attended maternity welfare or family planning clinics.Motivation to employ contraception, however, was only slight and approximately two-thirds of these very young mothers stated that they did not wish to avoid pregnancy. Only 15% of the married and 21% of the unmarried mothers were in favour of free abortion.