The incidence of induced abortion in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, 2016.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the penal code prohibits the provision of abortion. In practice, however, it is widely accepted that the procedure can be performed to save the life of a pregnant woman. Although abortion is highly restricted, anecdotal evidence indicates that women often resort to clandestine abortions, many of which are unsafe. However, to date, there are no official statistics or reliable data to support this assertion.

Objectives

Our study provides the first estimates of the incidence of abortion and unintended pregnancy in Kinshasa.

Methods

We applied the Abortion Incidence Complications Method (AICM) to estimate the incidence of abortion and unintended pregnancy. We used data from a Health Facilities Survey and a Prospective Morbid

SUBMITTER: Chae S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5624571 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature