necessity of a comprehensive study on abortion in Iran

Each year health and lives of millions of people are endangered by the termination of unwanted pregnancies. Unsafe induced abortions happen very often all over the world, especially in developing countries which many lead to death and disability of women in their fertility years. The highest incidence of unsafe induced abortions are reported from developing countries, especially those that impose tighter legal restrictions. These important problems which inflict women, need to be addressed by a comprehensive study on different aspects of abortion in such societies as Iran, which is confronting about 80,000 abortions each year. On of the objectives of this study was familiarization with the problem of abortion in the Iranian society where religious, legal and cultural prohibitions have lead to an increase in unsafe induced abortions. Other objectives of this study were to evaluate the causes of this increase, to assess the need for educative information on different aspects of unsafe abortions, to familiarize the legislative authorities with the present condition of the country and to make preparations for a change in views and also to cultivate the social grounds to reduce the increasing rate of such abortions. This study was based on literature and documentation reviews. Considering the young age of the Iranian population, changes in the views of Iraian women on the family size, late marriages, absence of parents at home in most of the day time, committing unsafe abortions due to the pressures exerted by restrictive legislations, endangering physical, sexual and psychosocial health of men and women and the increased treatment expenses and their effect on the health care budget, require great steps to be taken to make changes in legislative policies by applying WHO's views on the concept of health to hopefully witness a pronounced reduction in unsafe abortions. It seems that there are the possibilities to achieve legal solutions by considering the comprehensive aspects of abortion and taking divagate of the uncertainties and absence of a unified jurisprudential view on the time of soul inspiration and by relying on the robust law of [hardship], prescription of abortion in some instarces can come true

Embryo reduction in multiple pregnancies

By the means of assisted reproductive technologies [ART], such as in vitro fertilization [IVF] and intracyctoplasmic sperm injection techniques [ICSI], more than one million infants have been born throughout the world. One of the interesting happenings in infertility treatment procedures, that needs to be addressed, is the occurrence of multiple pregnancies which is usually seen following the use of ovary stimulating medications, embryo hatching and transference of a high number of embryos for higher success rates. For reducing the chances of this problem and preventing subsequent complications during pregnancy, embryo reduction is employed for two purposes: 1. Embryo reduction in triple or higher pregnancies, for the prevention of fetal and maternal complications and 2. Selective embryo reduction in cases where one or more fetuses have malformations or chromosomal defects. Embryo reduction methods: Dilatation of cervix and suction of one or more fetuses, via transvaginal route, by the help of sonography and trans-abdominally by the use of sonography. Although medical doctors might not be eager enough to know about embryo reduction in multiple pregnancies, but they have to know about the procedures and be prepared for medical interventions in emergencies, based on ethical and legal principles or on the request of patients. The first step, especially in infertility clinics, is reducing the chances or preventing the occurrence of these instances. Although selective reduction of embryos is ethically and legally accepted, but before any moves taken, offering infertility counseling is essential and it should include the expression of the risks of multiple pregnancies and ethical issues in embryo reduction before the transference of embryo [s] to the uterus, as lack of information on these subjects may lead to more problems afterwards. This study reviews the medical and ethical aspects of the issue and also introduces embryo reduction techniques in multiple pregnancies,in methods employing ovarian stimulating medications and in in vitro fertilization techniques. This method of embryo reduction, will reduce the risks of abortion, premature births, birth of malformed children and fetal demise, otherwise these would be the case if measures are not taken to correct the problem