Problems of implementation and consequences of the 1975 provisional law to liberalize abortion in France.

The passage of the 1975 law to liberalize abortion in France was inevitable because of the inadequacy of the 1920 law. The new law was passed quickly at the end of 1974 and its rapid implementation on January 17, 1975, caught public health officials by surprise. Two benefits have resulted from the law's implementation: (a) abortion has become a medical act, reducing the incidence of illegal termination of pregnancy and its complications; and (b) it has limited the need to travel to more liberal countries for an abortion. Chief among the law's disadvantages are the nonapplication of certain of its sections, the absence of means to curb noncomplying physicians and a certain laxity in its application due to inadequate public knowledge of the risks involved in repeated abortions.

[Contraceptive efficiency. Reflections on statistical evaluation and real value]. / Efficacite de la contraception. Reflexions sur son evaluation statistiqu e et sa valeur reelle.

PIP: The efficiency of contraceptive techniques is discussed in relation to the motivation of users. Comparative studies of contraceptive effici ency show side variations of efficiency for any particular method, dosage, or device. In addition, it has been found that: most contraceptive failures occur during the early years of a marriage; and have to do with the spacing rather than with the number of children, couples who want few children tend to use more efficient methods from the beginning of the marriage; and contraceptive efficiency tends to improve dramatically once the desired family size has been reached. These findings suggest that the intensity of the couple's motivation may be a crucial factor in contraceptive efficiency; the relational skills of the prescribing physician may be another. The example of contraceptive efficiency in the People's Republic of China is adduced.^ieng