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WHY CAN'T WE LOVE THEM BOTH
by Dr. and Mrs. J.C. Willke
CHAPTER 21
MATERNAL DEATHS AND LONG TERM
COMPLICATIONS
— ABORTION – CHILDBIRTH —
It is claimed by abortion proponents that abortion is safer than
childbirth. They claim 1 death per 100,000 abortions compared to 10 deaths per100,000
deliveries . . . Not True
What
is the maternal mortality from childbirth?
Reported average maternal mortality 1979 through
1986 was 9.1 per 100,000 deliveries, having declined from 11 to 7.4. Morbidity & Mortality Report, July 1991, Cent. Dis. Cont., Vol. 40, No. 55-1
If all causes of maternal death, other than
those associated with live birth i.e., abortion, tubal pregnancy, molar pregnancy, etc.,
were excluded. . . . "the maternal mortality for 1985 would be 4.7 deaths per 100,000
live births. " "Induced Termination of Preg .
. . ," Council on Scientific Affairs, AMA; JAMA, Dec. 9, ’92, Vol. 268,
No. 22, p. 3231 147
And the rate has dropped further since the
above, but the U.S. Center for Disease Control (see Chapter 17) does not break down their
figures. It continues to report a figure for "maternal mortality" that includes
abortion and other deaths.
But some mothers do die?
In developed nations, almost never. The National Maternity Hospital
in Dublin, Ireland, receives many complicated cases from around that nation and delivers 10% of all births in Ireland. In 10 years (1970-79) it delivered
74,317 births at more than 28 weeks gestation with only one woman dying from a cause
related to her pregnancy. J. Murphy et al., Therapeutic
Ab., The Medical Argument, Irish Med. J., Aug. ’82, Vol. 75, No. 8
Ed. note: And this report was from two decades ago. Since then
medical care has improved substantially.
Abortion Deaths
These have been grossly under-reported. The
expose’ on this is detailed in Lime 5 published by Life Dynamics. The author
and his staff have verified 23 deaths from induced abortion in 1992-93. All were reported
to state agencies. There is documentation from state health departments that 18 were
reported to the Federal Center for Disease Control. However, the official report of the
CDC listed only 2 deaths. "At Life Dynamics we knew abortion complications were
grotesquely under-reported, but attributed it to garden-variety bureaucratic
incompetence." But after continuing research, they documented "that the flawed
abortion data from the CDC was not from ineptitude but of dishonesty and
manipulation" after finding that "a large percentage of CDC employees had direct
ties to the abortion industry," they retitled the CDC to stand for "Center for
Damage Control" — "The CDC doesn’t oversee abortion, it justifies
it." M. Crutcher, Lime 5-Exploited by Choice, Genesis
Pub., Chapter 4, "Cooking the Books," p. 135.
The claim that relevant statistics can be collected from the place
where the abortion was performed "is little short of science fiction."
"Complications following abortions performed in
free-standing clinics is one of the most frequent gynecologic emergencies . . .
encountered. Even life-endangering complications rarely come to the attention of the
physician who performed the abortion unless the incident entails litigation. The
statistics presented by Cates represent substantial under- reporting and disregard
women’s reluctance to return to a clinic, where, in their mind, they received
inadequate treatment." L. Iffy, "Second
Trimester Abortions," JAMA, vol. 249, no. 5, Feb. 4, 1983, p. 588.
What can cause her death?
The main causes are infection, hemorrhage and uterine perforation.
How often do women get infection as a consequence of induced abortion?
A study from one of the most prestigious medical
centers in the world, John Hopkins University, reported: "Occurrence of genital tract
infection following elective abortion is a well-known complication." This institution
reports rates up to 5.2% for first trimester abortions and up to 18.5% in midtrimester. Burkman et al., "Culture and Treatment Results in Endometritis
Following Elective Abortion," Amer. Jour. OB/GYN, vol. 128, no. 5, 1977, pp.
556-559.
For the local freestanding abortion facility in your community, with
far inferior quality of care, the number of such infections will be at least double that
of such a medical center.
"One sequel to abortion can be a killer. This
is pelvic abscess, almost always from a perforation of the uterus and sometimes also of
the bowel," said two professors from UCLA, in reporting on four such cases. C. Gassner & C. Ballard, Amer. Jour. OB/GYN, vol. 48, p.
716 as reported in Emerg. Med. After Abortion-Abscess, vol. 19, no. 4, Apr. 1977
In an underdeveloped country, complications are more frequent and
treatment is usually less available and effective.
Can infection cause damage?
Infection in the womb and tubes often does permanent damage. The
Fallopian tube is a fragile organ, a very tiny bore tube. If infection injures it, it
often seals shut. The typical infection involving these organs is pelvic inflammatory
disease (PID).
Patients with Chlamydia Trachomatous infection of
the cervix (13% in this series) who get induced abortion "run a 23% risk of
developing PID." E. Quigstad et al., British
Jour. of Venereal Disease, June 1982, p. 182
"Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) is
difficult to manage and often leads to infertility, even with prompt treatment . . .
Approximately 10% of women will develop tubal adhesions leading to infertility after one
episode of PID, 30% after two episodes, and more than 60% after three episodes." M. Spence, "PID: Detection & Treatment," Sexually Transmitted
Disease Bulletin, John Hopkins Univ., vol. 3, no. 1, Feb. 1983
"Acute inflammatory conditions occur in 5% of
the cases, whereas permanent complications such as chronic inflammatory conditions of the
female organs, sterility, and ectopic [tubal] pregnancies are registered in 20-30% of all
women . . . these are definitely higher in primigravidas [aborted for first
pregnancy]."
Kodasek, "Artificial Termination of Pregnancy
in Czechoslovakia," Internat’l Jour. GYN/OB, vol. 9, no. 3, 1971 Venereal disease, usually Gonorrhea or Chlamydia, causes PID.
This, if present, vastly complicates an induced abortion. "Chlamydia trachomatous was
cultured from the cervix in 70 of 557 women admitted for therapeutic abortion. Among the
70, 22 developed acute PID postoperatively (4% of the total)." E.
Quigstad et al., "PID Associated with C. Trachomatous Infection, A Prospective
Study," British Jour. of Venereal Disease, vol. 59, no. 3, 1982, pp. 189-192
Another study revealed a 17% incidence of
post-abortal Chlamydia infection. Barbacci et al.,
"Post Abortal Endometritis and Chlamydia," OB & GYN, 68:686, 1986.
In a classic English study at a university hospital
which reported on four years’ experience, "there was a 27% complication rate
from infection." J.A. Stallworthy et al.,
"Legal Abortion: A Critical Assessment of its Risks," The Lancet, Dec. 4,
1971
What of bleeding?
Bleeding is common. Most get by, but some need blood transfusions.
The Stallworthy study (above) reported that 9.5% needed transfusions. Most recent studies
are reporting smaller percentages.
Are
blood transfusions a cause of death in abortions?
Yes, and these deaths are never associated directly nor reported as
statistics related to abortions. Here is how this works: First, we must know how many
women need blood transfusions after getting induced abortions. These figures are hard to
come by. The only controlled studies are from university medical enters, which do only a
small fraction of all abortions. Over 90% of abortions in the U.S. and varying percentages
in other nations are done in free-standing abortion chambers where the medical care is
only a faint shadow of the ompetence of those medical centers. Women who hemorrhage from
these abortions are sent to "real" hospitals for transfusions and surgery. The
percentage who need transfusions then must remain an estimate as these commercial
establishments do not report this. How many then? Let’s be conservative and say that
one in every hundred needs a blood transfusion. If there are 1,600,000 abortions annually
in the United States, this means that 1% or 16,000 women were transfused.
Viral hepatitis is transmitted in up to 10% of
patients transfused. Ten percent of 16,000 is 1,600 women. Amer. Assn. Blood Banks and Amer. Red Cross, Circular Information, 1984, p. 6
An analysis of 300,000 cases of Hepatitis virus infection
showed that deaths occurred from three causes:
322 from acute disease, 5100 from cirrhosis, and
1200 from liver cancer. This mortality rate is over 2%. R.
Voelker, Hepatitis B: Planned Standard, Am. Med. News, Oct. 13, ‘89, pg 2.
Two percent of 1600 women means that ultimately 32
deaths result annually from abortions for this reason. AIDS is another threat. Two percent
of AIDS has been acquired by blood transfusions. With recent careful screening techniques,
this is now much less. Even so, 200-400 people in developed countries, per year, are still
being exposed via blood transfusions. Noyes,
"Transfusions Risk Despite Screening," Family Practice News, May 15,
1987.
In underdeveloped nations the AIDs threat ranges from seldom to
common.
Are blood clots ever a
problem?
Blood clots are one of the causes of death to mothers who deliver
babies normally. They are also a cause of death in healthy young women who have abortions
performed.
Embolism (floating objects in the blood that go to
the lungs) is another problem. Childbirth is a normal process, and the body is well
prepared for the birth of the child and the separation and expulsion of the placenta.
Surgical abortion is an abnormal process, and slices the unripe placenta from the wall of
the uterus into which its roots have grown. This sometimes causes the fluid around the
baby, or other pieces of tissue or blood clots, to be forced into the mother’s
circulation. These then travel to her lungs, causing damage and occasional death. This is
also a major cause of maternal deaths from the salt poisoning method of abortion. For
instance, pulmonary thromboembolism (blood clots to the lungs) was the cause of eight
mothers dying from abortions, as reported to the U.S. Center for Disease Control. W. Cates et al., Amer. Jour. OB/GYN, vol. 132, p. 169 And this can occur in those as young as 14 years old. Pediatrics,
vol. 68, no. 4, Oct. 1971
Also, amniotic fluid embolism has "emerged as
an important cause of death from legally induced abortion." Of 15 cases, the risk
seems to be greater after three months. Treatment is ineffective." R. Guidotti et al., Amer. Jour. OB/GYN, vol. 41, 1981, p. 257 153
And has an 80% mortality rate. S. Clark, Amniotic Fluid Embolism, the Female Patient, vol. 14, Aug. ’89, p. 50
What is Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation?
This is a sudden drop in blood clotting ability
which causes extensive internal bleeding and sometimes death. The classic paper was on
hypertonic saline (salt poisoning) abortions (see reference below). H. Glueck et al., "Hypertonic Saline Abortion, Correlation with D.I.C.," JAMA, vol. 225, no. 1, July 2, 1973,
pp. 28-29
"Saline-induced abortion
is now the first or second most common cause of obstetric hypofibrinogenemia." [Same
as D.I.C. above]. L. Talbert, Univ. of NC, "DIC
More Common Threat with Use of Saline Abortion," Family Practice News, vol. 5,
no. 19, Oct. 1975
In recent years this method has been seldom used.
However, D.I.C. has also been caused by D&E and Prostaglandin abortions. White et al., ""D.I.C. Following Three Mid-Trimester
Abortions," Anaesthesiology, vol. 58, 1983, pp. 99-100
Apart from deliberate mis-reporting to mask abortion death, are there others
innocently missed?
Yes. For instance:
- Consider the mother who hemorrhaged, was transfused, got
hepatitis, and died months later. Official cause of death, Hepatitis. Actual cause,
abortion.
- A perforated uterus leads to pelvic abscess, sepsis (blood
poisoning), and death. The official report of the cause of death may list pelvic abscess
and septicemia. Abortion will not be listed.
- Abortion causes tubal pathology. She has an ectopic pregnancy
years later and dies. The cause listed will be ectopic pregnancy. The actual cause,
abortion.
- Deep depression and guilt following an abortion leads to suicide.
The cause listed, suicide! Actual cause, abortion.
But many are misreported on the original death certificate and are
not quite innocent.
- The kindhearted surgeon, unable to save the life of an abortion
victim, feels that she and her family have been punished enough. He doesn’t want to
ruin her and her family’s reputation in the community
— so he forgets to mention abortion on the death certificate.
- If the abortionist does the follow-up care and the patient dies
from the abortion, the abortionist doesn’t want the reputation of being a butcher, so
another cause is listed.
- Usually, however, a different doctor sees a patient who dies from
the damage done from an abortion, but she and her family hotly deny the abortion. The
abortion connection cannot be absolutely proven, and the new doctor fears a suit for
malpractice or for defamation of character, and so he lists another cause.
You mean all maternal deaths from abortion are not reported?
That’s exactly correct. The official reporting
agency for the U.S. government is the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia.
Listen to this: During the two-year stretch of 1991 and ’92, the CDC officially
reported only one mother each year dying from induced abortion. In fact, there are 20
documented deaths. Of these, 14 were reported directly to the CDC from state health
agencies. The CDC only listed two of them. Mr. Crutcher’s book, Lime 5, which accuses
this agency of gross dishonesty and malfeasance in its reporting, is extremely convincing.
M. Crutcher, Life Dynamics, personal communication,
July ’96 155
Even so, the situation today is
better than the "5,000 to 10,000 women who died annually in the U.S.A. from
back-alley abortions," isn’t it?
These figures, often cited by pro-abortionists, are simply false.
During the debate on the floor of the U.S. Senate on the Hatch-Eagleton Pro-Life Amendment
in 1983, the U.S. Bureau of Vital Statistics provided the data on such deaths. Its reports
showed that you must go back to the pre-Penicillin era to find more than 1,000 maternal
deaths per year from illegal and legal abortions combined. The precipitous drop in
maternal deaths in the 1950s and ‘60s occurred while abortions were still illegal.
Before the first state legalized abortions in 1966, the total deaths were down to 120 per
year. By 1972, before the Supreme Court legalized abortion in all 50 states, it was down
to 39 per year in the entire U.S. Since legalization, the slow decline has continued, so
that now the only difference is that more mothers are dying from legal, rather than
illegal abortions.
U.S. BUREAU OF
VITAL STATISTICS CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL
Reported Maternal Deaths from YEAR
Illegal Abortion in U.S.
| 1940 |
1,679 |
| 1950 |
316 |
| 1960 |
289 |
| 1966 |
120 First State Legalized in 1967 |
| 1970 |
128 |
| 1972 |
39 Supreme Court Decision in 1973 |
| 1977 |
21 |
| 1981 |
8 |
Taken from U.S. Senate
graph
What of
pregnancy and abortion in teenagers?
Early on, it was thought that pregnancy in young teenagers was more
risky than in older women. But recent studies have shown that teenage mothers have no more
risks during pregnancy and labor, and their babies fare just as well as their more mature
sisters’ babies, if they have had good prenatal care.
"We have found that teenage mothers, given
proper care, have the least complications in childbirth. The younger the mother, the
better the birth. If there are more problems, society makes it so, not biology." B. Sutton-Smith, Jour. of Youth and Adolescence As reported
in the New York Times, April 24, 1979
"No relationship between mother’s physical
growth and maturation and adverse pregnancy course or outcome was demonstrated. Sukanich et al., "Physical Maturity and Pregnancy Outcome Under
16 Years," Pediatrics, vol. 78, no. 1, July 1986, p. 31
Dr. Jerome Johnson of John Hopkins University, and
Dr. Felix Heald, Professor of Pediatrics, University of Maryland, agree that the fact that
teenage mothers often have low birth weight babies is not due to "a pregnant
teenager’s biologic destiny." They pointed to the fact that the cause for this
almost invariably is due to the lack of adequate prenatal care. "With optimal care,
the outcome of an adolescent pregnancy can be as successful as the outcome of a
non-adolescent pregnancy." Family Practice
News, Dec. 15, 1975
"The overall incidence of pregnancy
complications among adolescents 16 years and younger is similar to that reported for older
women." E. Hopkins, "Pregnancy
Complications Not Higher in Teens," OB-GYN News, vol. 15, no. 10, May 1980 "Obstetric and neonatal risks for teenagers over 15 are no greater than for
women in their twenties, provided they receive adequate care." There is evidence that
in 15- to 17-year old women, pregnancy may even be healthier than in older ages. E. McAnarney, "Pregnancy May Be Safer," OB-GYN News, Jan. 1978 Pediatrics,
vol. 6, no. 2, Feb. 1978, pp. 199-205 F. Avey, Canada Col. Family Physicians,
"Pregnant Teens . . ." Family Practice News, Jan. 15, 1987, p. 14
But the abortion picture is different, particularly in regard to
cervical damage.
After years of legalized abortion experience, a pro-abortion
professor of OB/GYN at the University of Newcastle-on-Tyne reported on his follow-up,
ranging from two to twelve years, of 50 teenage mothers who had been aborted by him. He
noted that "the cervix of the young teenager, pregnant for the first time, is
invariably small and tightly closed and especially liable to damage on dilatation."
He reported on the "rather dismal" results of their 53 subsequent pregnancies:
Six had another induced abortion. Nineteen had spontaneous miscarriages. One delivered a stillborn baby at 6 months. Six babies died between
birth and 2 years. Twenty-one babies survived J.
Russell, "Sexual Activity and Its Consequences in the Teenager." Clinics in
OB, GYN, vol. 1, no. 3, Dec. 1974, pp. 683-698
"Physical and emotional damage from abortion is greater in a
young girl. Adolescent abortion candidates differ from their sexually mature counterparts,
and these differences contribute to high morbidity." They have immature cervixes and
"run the risk of a difficult, potentially traumatic dilatation." The use of
laminaria "in no way mitigates our present concern over the problems of
abortion." 158 C. Cowell, Problems of Adolescent Abortion, Ortho
Panel 14, Toronto General Hospital
"The younger the patient, the greater the gestation (age of the
unborn), the higher the complication rate. . . . Some of the most catastrophic
complications occur in teenagers."
"Eighty-seven percent (87%) of 486
obstetricians and gynecologists had to hospitalize at least one patient this year due to
complications of legal abortions." M. Bulfin,
M.D., OB-GYN Observer, Oct.-Nov. 1975
Abortions May Be Legal But
They Are Not Always Safe
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