BEIJING, Dec. 13 (Xinhuanet) -- A study shows that women who underwent abortions still suffer from mental distress, anxiety and depression five years after the abortion.
The study by Norwegian researchers assessed how abortions and miscarriages could mentally or psychologically affect the women during a five-year period.
Conducted by the University of Oslo, the study involved a group of 40 women who suffered a miscarriage and 80 women who underwent an induced abortion.
The subjects of the study were interviewed about their feelings ten days, six months, two years and five years after the pregnancy termination.
Researchers found that, after 10 days, 47.5 per cent of women who had miscarried suffered from some degree of mental distress compared with 30 per cent of the abortion group.
The proportion of women who had a miscarriage suffering distress decreased during the study period, to just 2.6 per cent at two years and five years.
But levels of distress remained high in the abortion group. After two years, 18 per cent were still experiencing distress, with 20 per cent at five years.
The researchers also said that women who had an abortion experienced high levels of anxiety, feelings of guilt, shame and relief.
They had to make an effort to avoid thinking about the event. Compared with the general population, these women also had more anxiety even five years after an abortion.
The researchers, led by Anne Nordal Broen, said they had predicted that an abortion would cause "a more protracted course of mental disturbance" compared with a miscarriage.
The researchers said their work underlined the importance of giving women information about the psychological effects of losing a baby - either through miscarriage or abortion. Enditem
(Agencies)
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