Review the key concepts, formulae, and examples before starting your quiz.
🔑Concepts
Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) is defined as the intentional or voluntary termination of pregnancy before full term, also commonly known as induced abortion.
Globally, nearly to million MTPs are performed in a year, which accounts for approximately of the total number of conceived pregnancies in a year.
The Government of India legalized MTP in with strict conditions to prevent its misuse, specifically to curb illegal female foeticide following sex determination via amniocentesis.
According to the MTP (Amendment) Act, , a pregnancy may be terminated within the first weeks on the opinion of one registered medical practitioner. For pregnancies between and weeks, the opinion of two registered medical practitioners is required for specific categories of women.
MTPs are considered relatively safe during the first trimester, i.e., up to weeks of pregnancy. Second-trimester abortions are significantly more risky for the mother.
Common reasons for MTP include failure of contraceptives used during coitus, unwanted pregnancies resulting from rape, or cases where the continuation of the pregnancy could be harmful or even fatal to either the mother or the foetus.
📐Formulae
💡Examples
Problem 1:
A pregnant woman discovers at weeks that the foetus has a severe abnormality that is incompatible with life. According to the MTP (Amendment) Act , what is the legal requirement for her to undergo a termination?
Solution:
The woman requires the opinion of only one registered medical practitioner to proceed with the MTP.
Explanation:
As per the amendment, for pregnancies up to weeks, a single medical practitioner's opinion is sufficient. If the pregnancy was between and weeks, two opinions would have been mandatory.
Problem 2:
Why is the period after weeks of pregnancy considered more critical for MTP?
Solution:
After the first trimester ( weeks), the foetus becomes more intimately associated with the maternal tissues (placental development is complete), making surgical intervention more complex.
Explanation:
In the second trimester, the risks of maternal haemorrhage and infection increase significantly, making the procedure much more dangerous than during the first weeks.