Occurrence and Determining Factor of Pregnancy Termination (Spontaneous Abortion and Still Birth) in India

Priya Sharma , International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)
Navaid Ali Khan, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS)

Pregnancy which is not result in live birth either due to induced abortion or stillbirth and spontaneous abortion called wastage of pregnancy. In India many pregnancy of women has been terminating due to many reasons. which is the area of concern due to high rate of foetal wastage in India as well as India witnesses one of the highest female infanticides incidents in the world. Pregnancy which terminate due to any reasons bring threat for the mental, emotional and physical health of woman. Stillbirth is a common tragedy occurring in about one in hundred deliveries. Termination of pregnancies can be use an important indicator of access to and quality of antenatal, maternal and delivery care. High rate of pregnancy wastage affects parent’s attitudes towards small family size. It is therefore important to understand the scale of pregnancy wastage to arrive at programmes to prevent or reduce them. Demographic and Health Survey of India (DHS)-2, 3 and 4 has been used for the study. Spontaneous abortion and still birth (foetal wastage) has been considered as dependent variables. Bio-demographic, social, economic and maternal indicator has been considered as the predictors variables of the study. Foetal wastage has been found high in urban areas not in rural areas, which may be due to traditional practices, social value and strong son preference. Higher the spontaneous abortion and still birth have been found among the lower social and economic background of women. Women health indicator and ANC care (antenatal care) are vital in pregnancy termination.

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 Presented in Session P1. Poster Session Fertility, Family and the Life Course