Reasons given for abortions in England and Wales, 1991-2011

Reasons given for abortions in England and Wales, 1991-2011

compiled by Wm. Robert Johnston
last updated 9 September 2012

Abortion in the United Kingdom is governed by the 1967 Abortion Act (amended) which stipulates several possible grounds for abortion, at least one of which must be stipulated by two registered medical practitioners. These seven grounds, as defined since 1991, are listed in the first table below. The annual Department of Health statistical reports on abortion in England and Wales provides statistics on abortion, including by grounds for abortion. Data below is based on these reports, supplemented by other sources.

Grounds for abortion in the United Kingdom, 1991-present

A the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the pregnant woman greater than if the pregnancy were terminated

B the termination is necessary to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman

C the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman

D the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of any existing children of the family of the pregnant woman

E there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped

F to save the life of the pregnant woman

G to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman

Multiple grounds may be given for a particular abortion. In the following tables, single or multiple grounds are indicated as follows: "A" for ground A only, "A+B/C/D" for ground A plus one or more of grounds B, C, and D, etc.

Abortions, England and Wales residents, by cited grounds

cited ground 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 total, 1991-2001 total, 2002-2011 cited grounds

A; A+B/C/D; F; G 246 256 166 147 126 131 121 108 95 137 61 117 137 128 128 149 112 51 56 41 46 1,594 965

   A; A+B/C/D 244 254 163 146 126 128 117 106 94 134 61 116 45 1,573 risk to maternal life

   F; G 2 2 3 1 0 3 4 2 1 3 0 1 1 21 grave maternal risk

      F 0 1 2 0 0 3 2 1 0 1 0 10

      G 2 1 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 2 0 11

B; B+C/D 7,859 5,712 3,837 3,194 2,387 2,443 1,981 2,030 1,836 1,644 1,572 1,769 2,218 1,674 1,718 1,059 622 515 451 317 150 34,495 10,493 risk of permanent maternal injury

   B 7,441 5,468 3,669 3,069 2,283 2,350 1,876 1,941 1,757 1,587 1,522 1,556 1,192 1,042 654 385 381 391 265 102 32,963

   B+C/D 418 244 168 125 104 93 105 89 79 57 50 213 482 676 405 237 134 60 52 48 1,532

C 95,988 136,368 136,800 137,029 136,928 151,550 155,164 162,701 159,444 162,358 164,306 165,063 171,039 176,754 178,341 187,740 193,592 190,546 184,000 185,291 185,973 1,598,636 1,818,339 risk to maternal physical or mental health

D; D+C 12,251 16,363 15,108 14,373 13,051 11,863 11,026 11,202 10,513 9,570 8,703 7,089 6,247 4,965 4,313 2,753 2,234 2,196 2,508 1,635 1,455 134,023 35,395 risk to other children of mother

E; E+A/B/C/D 1,223 1,802 1,935 1,796 1,823 1,929 1,853 1,830 1,813 1,833 1,722 1,894 1,941 1,894 1,916 2,036 1,939 1,988 2,085 2,290 2,307 19,559 20,290 fetal health issues

   E 1,039 1,547 1,723 1,619 1,671 1,775 1,724 1,704 1,702 1,760 1,641 1,794 17,905

   E+A/B/C/D 184 255 212 177 152 154 129 126 111 73 81 100 1,654

TOTAL 117,567 160,501 157,846 156,539 154,315 167,916 170,145 177,871 173,701 175,542 176,364 175,932 181,582 185,415 186,416 193,737 198,499 195,296 189,100 189,574 189,931 1,788,307 1,885,482 TOTAL

Abortions, England and Wales residents, by cited grounds as percentage of all abortions

abortions by reason 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 total, 1991-2001 total, 2002-2011 cited grounds

A; A+B/C/D; F; G 0.21 0.16 0.11 0.09 0.08 0.08 0.07 0.06 0.05 0.08 0.03 0.07 0.08 0.07 0.07 0.08 0.06 0.03 0.03 0.02 0.02 0.09 0.05

   A; A+B/C/D 0.21 0.16 0.10 0.09 0.08 0.08 0.07 0.06 0.05 0.08 0.03 0.07 0.02 0.09 risk to maternal life

   F; G 0.002 0.001 0.002 0.001 0.000 0.002 0.002 0.001 0.001 0.002 0.000 0.001 0.001 0.001 grave maternal risk

      F 0.000 0.001 0.001 0.000 0.000 0.002 0.001 0.001 0.000 0.001 0.000 0.001

      G 0.002 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.000 0.000 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.000 0.001

B; B+C/D 6.68 3.56 2.43 2.04 1.55 1.45 1.16 1.14 1.06 0.94 0.89 1.01 1.22 0.90 0.92 0.55 0.31 0.26 0.24 0.17 0.08 1.93 0.56 risk of permanent maternal injury

   B 6.33 3.41 2.32 1.96 1.48 1.40 1.10 1.09 1.01 0.90 0.86 0.88 0.64 0.56 0.34 0.19 0.20 0.21 0.14 0.05 1.84

   B+C/D 0.36 0.15 0.11 0.08 0.07 0.06 0.06 0.05 0.05 0.03 0.03 0.12 0.26 0.36 0.21 0.12 0.07 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.09

C 81.65 84.96 86.67 87.54 88.73 90.25 91.20 91.47 91.79 92.49 93.16 93.82 94.19 95.33 95.67 96.90 97.53 97.57 97.30 97.74 97.92 89.39 96.44 risk to maternal physical or mental health

D; D+C 10.42 10.19 9.57 9.18 8.46 7.06 6.48 6.30 6.05 5.45 4.93 4.03 3.44 2.68 2.31 1.42 1.13 1.12 1.33 0.86 0.77 7.49 1.88 risk to other children of mother

E; E+A/B/C/D 1.04 1.12 1.23 1.15 1.18 1.15 1.09 1.03 1.04 1.04 0.98 1.08 1.07 1.02 1.03 1.05 0.98 1.02 1.10 1.21 1.21 1.09 1.08 fetal health issues

   E 0.88 0.96 1.09 1.03 1.08 1.06 1.01 0.96 0.98 1.00 0.93 1.02 1.00

   E+A/B/C/D 0.16 0.16 0.13 0.11 0.10 0.09 0.08 0.07 0.06 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.09

TOTAL 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 TOTAL

Abortions for fetal disorders, England and Wales residents, by primary disorder

fetal disorder 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 total, 1991-2001 total, 2002-2011

fetal malformation of nervous system 490 519 521 465 494 520 424 448 434 460 411 411 486 443 456 510 473 477 496 522 540 5,186 4,814

   anencephaly 163 154 159 163 150 175 148 140 159 145 139 166 144 172 159 189 193 1,112 1,606

   chaniorachischisis iniencephaly 2 1 3 0

   encephalocele 30 30 18 22 28 22 13 20 20 19 24 41 33 20 26 21 27 163 251

   microcephaly 6 8 6 3 7 3 2 4 6 6 2 5 7 3 4 5 6 35 48

   hydrocephalus 68 86 61 50 55 42 45 34 55 52 44 44 31 33 26 23 29 407 371

   other brain malformations 46 45 43 40 39 38 39 79 65 57 74 77 78 75 93 88 81 290 767

   spina bifida 143 152 104 120 117 134 127 98 118 90 121 106 117 118 114 128 144 897 1,154

   other nervous system malformations 36 44 33 50 38 46 37 36 63 74 52 71 63 56 74 68 60 284 617

other fetal malformations 381 362 400 413 417 417 366 478 431 438 403 452 412 479 519 572 514 2,756 4,698

   eye, ear, face, neck malformations 7 6 5 10 8 7 4 4 5 2 2 2 1 2 4 5 5 47 32

   cardiovascular system malformations 77 82 94 93 108 120 110 106 108 147 111 129 114 124 169 161 152 684 1,321

   respiratory system malformations 5 10 6 6 6 15 7 19 25 28 19 24 11 10 15 16 12 55 179

   cleft lip and cleft palate 6 5 3 9 2 1 2 4 5 2 0 2 3 7 4 25 30

   digestive system malformations 5 4 4 6 4 9 6 5 6 4 1 6 1 5 4 23 47

   urinary system malformations 104 75 85 88 76 76 62 66 78 69 82 69 74 101 94 100 107 566 840

   musculoskeletal system malformations 106 110 121 128 117 115 99 151 120 124 117 138 125 147 159 181 160 796 1,422

   skin, breast integument phakomatoses 4 1 6 5 6 2 3 4 4 4 1 4 3 1 4 4 3 27 32

   other congenital malformations 67 69 83 83 89 67 75 118 83 55 60 80 83 86 70 93 67 533 795

chromosomal abnormality 341 402 453 443 468 561 580 568 596 617 591 707 709 726 748 772 747 739 775 831 890 5,620 7,644

   Down's syndrome 283 303 316 335 329 348 347 382 401 419 429 436 437 436 468 482 512 2,261 4,402

   Edward's syndrome 61 86 96 91 95 111 108 138 139 135 151 123 129 143 144 164 176 648 1,442

   Patau's syndrome 30 41 36 31 39 43 44 50 44 54 52 46 63 61 45 51 54 264 520

   other chromosomal abnormalities 94 131 132 111 133 115 92 137 125 118 116 167 118 99 118 134 148 808 1,280

family history of heritable disorder 79 93 101 95 91 107 80 68 140 138 113 103 119 112 132 121 145 140 144 181 157 1,105 1,354

other specified issues 287 219 156 78 137 152 145 136 150 137 172 178 174 169 164 172 155 147 145 180 202 1,769 1,686

   metabolic disorders 2

   fetus affected by maternal factors 62 99 96 74 98 67 89 124 114 105 117 108 101 99 78 115 124 585 1,085

   fetal disorders related to gestation and growth 15 6 9 7 12 16 12 5 10 11 7 15 12 15 17 9 14 77 115

   fetus affected by congenital infectious disease 2 6 1 5 1 2 2 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 1 15 10

   hemorrhagic/hematological fetal disorders 4 2 3 1 1 3 2 1 11 6

   hydrops fetalis not due to haemolytic disease 31 22 25 28 32 30 40 26 38 38 26 40 32 27 33 31 27 208 318

   multiple gestation 1 2 2 5 3 1 5 7 9 5 13 22 30 5 100

   other fetal/placental/membrane/amniotic fluid problems 15 6 6 5 8 21 7 7 0 2 1 1 1 2 3 3 61 27

   exposure to communicable disease 55 58 36 18 19 17 11 24 4 6 6 9 11 3 254 23

   need for rubella immunization 8 8 4 3 4 0 4 2 0 2 0 35 0

   suspected drug exposure 173 126 96 42 437 0

   suspected radiation exposure 36 21 14 10 81 0

unknown 545 519 594 593 261 227 221 207 76 64 69 17 15 6 7 7 4 5 1 2 4 3,376 68

TOTAL 1742 1752 1825 1674 1,832 1,929 1,850 1,840 1,813 1,833 1,722 1,894 1,941 1,894 1,916 2,036 1,939 1,988 2,085 2,290 2,307 19,812 20,290

Abortions for fetal disorders, England and Wales residents, by general disorder as percentage of all ground E abortions

type of fetal disorder 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 total, 1991-2001 total, 2002-2011

fetal malformation of nervous system 28.13 29.62 28.55 27.78 26.97 26.96 22.92 24.35 23.94 25.10 23.87 21.70 25.04 23.39 23.80 25.05 24.39 23.99 23.79 22.79 23.41 26.18 23.73

other fetal malformations 20.80 18.77 21.62 22.45 23.00 22.75 21.25 25.24 22.21 23.13 21.03 22.20 21.25 24.09 24.89 24.98 22.28 13.91 23.15

Down's syndrome 15.45 15.71 17.08 18.21 18.15 18.99 20.15 20.17 20.66 22.12 22.39 21.41 22.54 21.93 22.45 21.05 22.19 11.41 21.70

other/unspecified chromosomal abnormalities 19.58 22.95 24.82 26.46 10.10 13.37 14.27 12.66 14.73 14.68 14.17 17.16 15.87 16.21 16.65 16.50 15.99 15.24 14.72 15.24 16.38 16.95 15.98

family history of heritable disorder 4.54 5.31 5.53 5.68 4.97 5.55 4.32 3.70 7.72 7.53 6.56 5.44 6.13 5.91 6.89 5.94 7.48 7.04 6.91 7.90 6.81 5.58 6.67

other specified issues 16.48 12.50 8.55 4.66 7.48 7.88 7.84 7.39 8.27 7.47 9.99 9.40 8.96 8.92 8.56 8.45 7.99 7.39 6.95 7.86 8.76 8.93 8.31

unknown 31.29 29.62 32.55 35.42 14.25 11.77 11.95 11.25 4.19 3.49 4.01 0.90 0.77 0.32 0.37 0.34 0.21 0.25 0.05 0.09 0.17 17.04 0.34

TOTAL 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 99.64 100.00 99.69 99.90 99.85 99.95 99.76 99.91 100.00 100.00 99.87

Abortions, England and Wales residents, for selective reductions and for certain fetal disorders

reason for abortion 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 total known, 1991-2011 % of all abortions, reported years

selective terminations, all reasons
(number of fetuses) 37 32 103 75 97 86 88 65 46 49 56 65 64 76 64 47 54 71 85 81 1,341 0.038

Down's syndrome (DOH) 283 303 316 335 329 348 347 382 401 419 429 436 437 436 468 482 512 6,663 0.216

Down's syndrome (NDSCR) 369 441 507 542 578 654 664 618 648 684 677 709 694 814 830 886 907 936 904 942 14,004 0.402

Edward's syndrome (DOH) 61 86 96 91 95 111 108 138 139 135 151 123 129 143 144 164 176 2,090 0.068

Edward's syndrome (NDSCR) 46 184 228 266 302 339 340 344 2,049 0.135

Patau's syndrome (DOH) 30 41 36 31 39 43 44 50 44 54 52 46 63 61 45 51 54 784 0.025

Patau's syndrome (NDSCR) 23 100 94 131 144 111 107 151 861 0.057

cleft lip and cleft palate (DOH) 6 5 3 9 2 1 2 4 5 2 0 2 3 7 4 55 0.002

cleft lip and cleft palate (BINOCAR) 57 34 45 136 0.024

Figures reported by the Department of Health (DOH) are generally lower than those reported by sources tracking birth defects, in particular the National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register (NDSCR) and the British Isles Network of Congenital Anomaly Registers (BINOCAR).

Sources:

British Isles Network of Congenital Anomaly Registers, Dec. 2011, "Congenital Anomaly Statistics 2009: England and Wales," BINOCAR, on line [http://www.binocar.org/content/Annual%20report%202009.pdf].
British Isles Network of Congenital Anomaly Registers, July 2012, "Congenital Anomaly Statistics 2010: England and Wales," BINOCAR, on line [http://www.binocar.org/content/Annual%20report%202010%20FINAL%2031_07_12%20v2.pdf].
Department of Health, May 2012, "Abortion statistics, England and Wales: 2011," Department of Health, on line [https://www.wp.dh.gov.uk/transparency/files/2012/05/Commentary1.pdf].
Department of Health, 27 July 2005, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 2004," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/11/75/74/04117574.pdf].
Department of Health, 30 Oct. 2003, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 2002," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/08/00/59/04080059.PDF].
Department of Health, 4 July 2006, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 2005," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/13/68/59/04136859.pdf].
Department of Health, Aug. 2004, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 2003," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/11/66/26/04116626.pdf].
Department of Health, May 2011, "Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2010," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/documents/digitalasset/dh_127202.pdf].
Department of Health, 4 July 2011, "Legal abortions principal medical condition for abortions performed under ground E, 2002-2010," The National Archives, on line [http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/www.dh.gov.uk/en/FreedomOfInformation/Freedomofinformationpublicationschemefeedback/FOIreleases/DH_128012].
Government Statistical Service, 19 June 2007, "Statistical Bulletin: Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2006," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/idcplg?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=142305&Rendition=Web].
Government Statistical Service, June 2008, "Statistical Bulletin: Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2007," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/idcplg?IdcService=GET_FILE&dID=142305&Rendition=Web].
Government Statistical Service, May 2009, "Statistical Bulletin: Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2008," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/documents/digitalasset/dh_099714.pdf].
Government Statistical Service, May 2010, "Statistical Bulletin: Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2009," Department of Health, on line [http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/documents/digitalasset/dh_116336.pdf].
Government Statistical Service, May 2012, "Statistical Bulletin: Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2011," Department of Health, on line [https://www.wp.dh.gov.uk/transparency/files/2012/05/Commentary1.pdf].
NDSCR, Dec. 2003, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register 2002 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport02.pdf].
NDSCR, Dec. 2004, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register 2003 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport03.pdf].
NDSCR, Dec. 2005, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register 2004 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport04.pdf].
NDSCR, Feb. 2007, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register 2005 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport05.pdf].
NDSCR, April 2008, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register 2006 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport06.pdf].
NDSCR, Feb. 2009, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register 2007/8 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport0708.pdf].
NDSCR, Dec. 2009, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register for England and Wales: 2008/9 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport0809.pdf].
NDSCR, Dec. 2010, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register for England and Wales: 2009 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport09.pdf].
NDSCR, Dec. 2011, "The National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register for England and Wales: 2010 Annual Report," NDSCR, on line [http://www.wolfson.qmul.ac.uk/ndscr/reports/NDSCRreport10.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1992, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1991," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB18_1991/ab18_1991.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1993, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1992," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB19_1992/ab19_1992.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1994, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1993," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB20_1993/ab20_1993.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1995, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1994," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB21_1994/ab21_1994.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1996, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1995," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB22_1995/ab22_1995.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1997, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1996," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB23_1996/ab23_1996.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1998, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1997," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB24_1997/ab24_1997.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 1999, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1998," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB25_1998/ab25_1998.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 2000, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 1999," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB26_1999/ab26_1999.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 2001, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 2000," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB27/AB_No27_V1.pdf].
Office for National Statistics, 2002, "Abortion Statistics: Legal abortions carried out under the 1967 Abortion Act in England and Wales, 2001," National Statistics, on line [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/AB28_2001/AB28_2001.pdf].

© 2012 by Wm. Robert Johnston.
Last modified 9 September 2012.
Return to Home. Return to Other Policy Issues. Return to Abortion Statistics.

A	the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the pregnant woman greater than if the pregnancy were terminated
B	the termination is necessary to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman
C	the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman
D	the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of any existing children of the family of the pregnant woman
E	there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped
F	to save the life of the pregnant woman
G	to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman

cited ground	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	total, 1991-2001	total, 2002-2011	cited grounds
A; A+B/C/D; F; G	246	256	166	147	126	131	121	108	95	137	61	117	137	128	128	149	112	51	56	41	46	1,594	965
A; A+B/C/D	244	254	163	146	126	128	117	106	94	134	61	116									45	1,573		risk to maternal life
F; G	2	2	3	1	0	3	4	2	1	3	0	1									1	21		grave maternal risk
F	0	1	2	0	0	3	2	1	0	1	0											10
G	2	1	1	1	0	0	2	1	1	2	0											11
B; B+C/D	7,859	5,712	3,837	3,194	2,387	2,443	1,981	2,030	1,836	1,644	1,572	1,769	2,218	1,674	1,718	1,059	622	515	451	317	150	34,495	10,493	risk of permanent maternal injury
B	7,441	5,468	3,669	3,069	2,283	2,350	1,876	1,941	1,757	1,587	1,522	1,556		1,192	1,042	654	385	381	391	265	102	32,963
B+C/D	418	244	168	125	104	93	105	89	79	57	50	213		482	676	405	237	134	60	52	48	1,532
C	95,988	136,368	136,800	137,029	136,928	151,550	155,164	162,701	159,444	162,358	164,306	165,063	171,039	176,754	178,341	187,740	193,592	190,546	184,000	185,291	185,973	1,598,636	1,818,339	risk to maternal physical or mental health
D; D+C	12,251	16,363	15,108	14,373	13,051	11,863	11,026	11,202	10,513	9,570	8,703	7,089	6,247	4,965	4,313	2,753	2,234	2,196	2,508	1,635	1,455	134,023	35,395	risk to other children of mother
E; E+A/B/C/D	1,223	1,802	1,935	1,796	1,823	1,929	1,853	1,830	1,813	1,833	1,722	1,894	1,941	1,894	1,916	2,036	1,939	1,988	2,085	2,290	2,307	19,559	20,290	fetal health issues
E	1,039	1,547	1,723	1,619	1,671	1,775	1,724	1,704	1,702	1,760	1,641	1,794										17,905
E+A/B/C/D	184	255	212	177	152	154	129	126	111	73	81	100										1,654
TOTAL	117,567	160,501	157,846	156,539	154,315	167,916	170,145	177,871	173,701	175,542	176,364	175,932	181,582	185,415	186,416	193,737	198,499	195,296	189,100	189,574	189,931	1,788,307	1,885,482	TOTAL

abortions by reason	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	total, 1991-2001	total, 2002-2011	cited grounds
A; A+B/C/D; F; G	0.21	0.16	0.11	0.09	0.08	0.08	0.07	0.06	0.05	0.08	0.03	0.07	0.08	0.07	0.07	0.08	0.06	0.03	0.03	0.02	0.02	0.09	0.05
A; A+B/C/D	0.21	0.16	0.10	0.09	0.08	0.08	0.07	0.06	0.05	0.08	0.03	0.07									0.02	0.09		risk to maternal life
F; G	0.002	0.001	0.002	0.001	0.000	0.002	0.002	0.001	0.001	0.002	0.000	0.001									0.001	0.001		grave maternal risk
F	0.000	0.001	0.001	0.000	0.000	0.002	0.001	0.001	0.000	0.001	0.000											0.001
G	0.002	0.001	0.001	0.001	0.000	0.000	0.001	0.001	0.001	0.001	0.000											0.001
B; B+C/D	6.68	3.56	2.43	2.04	1.55	1.45	1.16	1.14	1.06	0.94	0.89	1.01	1.22	0.90	0.92	0.55	0.31	0.26	0.24	0.17	0.08	1.93	0.56	risk of permanent maternal injury
B	6.33	3.41	2.32	1.96	1.48	1.40	1.10	1.09	1.01	0.90	0.86	0.88		0.64	0.56	0.34	0.19	0.20	0.21	0.14	0.05	1.84
B+C/D	0.36	0.15	0.11	0.08	0.07	0.06	0.06	0.05	0.05	0.03	0.03	0.12		0.26	0.36	0.21	0.12	0.07	0.03	0.03	0.03	0.09
C	81.65	84.96	86.67	87.54	88.73	90.25	91.20	91.47	91.79	92.49	93.16	93.82	94.19	95.33	95.67	96.90	97.53	97.57	97.30	97.74	97.92	89.39	96.44	risk to maternal physical or mental health
D; D+C	10.42	10.19	9.57	9.18	8.46	7.06	6.48	6.30	6.05	5.45	4.93	4.03	3.44	2.68	2.31	1.42	1.13	1.12	1.33	0.86	0.77	7.49	1.88	risk to other children of mother
E; E+A/B/C/D	1.04	1.12	1.23	1.15	1.18	1.15	1.09	1.03	1.04	1.04	0.98	1.08	1.07	1.02	1.03	1.05	0.98	1.02	1.10	1.21	1.21	1.09	1.08	fetal health issues
E	0.88	0.96	1.09	1.03	1.08	1.06	1.01	0.96	0.98	1.00	0.93	1.02										1.00
E+A/B/C/D	0.16	0.16	0.13	0.11	0.10	0.09	0.08	0.07	0.06	0.04	0.05	0.06										0.09
TOTAL	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	TOTAL

fetal disorder	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	total, 1991-2001	total, 2002-2011
fetal malformation of nervous system	490	519	521	465	494	520	424	448	434	460	411	411	486	443	456	510	473	477	496	522	540	5,186	4,814
anencephaly					163	154	159	163	150	175	148	140	159	145	139	166	144	172	159	189	193	1,112	1,606
chaniorachischisis iniencephaly					2	1																3	0
encephalocele					30	30	18	22	28	22	13	20	20	19	24	41	33	20	26	21	27	163	251
microcephaly					6	8	6	3	7	3	2	4	6	6	2	5	7	3	4	5	6	35	48
hydrocephalus					68	86	61	50	55	42	45	34	55	52	44	44	31	33	26	23	29	407	371
other brain malformations					46	45	43	40	39	38	39	79	65	57	74	77	78	75	93	88	81	290	767
spina bifida					143	152	104	120	117	134	127	98	118	90	121	106	117	118	114	128	144	897	1,154
other nervous system malformations					36	44	33	50	38	46	37	36	63	74	52	71	63	56	74	68	60	284	617
other fetal malformations					381	362	400	413	417	417	366	478	431	438	403	452	412	479	519	572	514	2,756	4,698
eye, ear, face, neck malformations					7	6	5	10	8	7	4	4	5	2	2	2	1	2	4	5	5	47	32
cardiovascular system malformations					77	82	94	93	108	120	110	106	108	147	111	129	114	124	169	161	152	684	1,321
respiratory system malformations					5	10	6	6	6	15	7	19	25	28	19	24	11	10	15	16	12	55	179
cleft lip and cleft palate					6	5			3	9	2	1	2	4	5	2	0	2	3	7	4	25	30
digestive system malformations					5	4			4	6	4	9	6	5	6	4	1	6	1	5	4	23	47
urinary system malformations					104	75	85	88	76	76	62	66	78	69	82	69	74	101	94	100	107	566	840
musculoskeletal system malformations					106	110	121	128	117	115	99	151	120	124	117	138	125	147	159	181	160	796	1,422
skin, breast integument phakomatoses					4	1	6	5	6	2	3	4	4	4	1	4	3	1	4	4	3	27	32
other congenital malformations					67	69	83	83	89	67	75	118	83	55	60	80	83	86	70	93	67	533	795
chromosomal abnormality	341	402	453	443	468	561	580	568	596	617	591	707	709	726	748	772	747	739	775	831	890	5,620	7,644
Down's syndrome					283	303	316	335	329	348	347	382	401	419	429	436	437	436	468	482	512	2,261	4,402
Edward's syndrome					61	86	96	91	95	111	108	138	139	135	151	123	129	143	144	164	176	648	1,442
Patau's syndrome					30	41	36	31	39	43	44	50	44	54	52	46	63	61	45	51	54	264	520
other chromosomal abnormalities					94	131	132	111	133	115	92	137	125	118	116	167	118	99	118	134	148	808	1,280
family history of heritable disorder	79	93	101	95	91	107	80	68	140	138	113	103	119	112	132	121	145	140	144	181	157	1,105	1,354
other specified issues	287	219	156	78	137	152	145	136	150	137	172	178	174	169	164	172	155	147	145	180	202	1,769	1,686
metabolic disorders															2
fetus affected by maternal factors					62	99	96	74	98	67	89	124	114	105	117	108	101	99	78	115	124	585	1,085
fetal disorders related to gestation and growth					15	6	9	7	12	16	12	5	10	11	7	15	12	15	17	9	14	77	115
fetus affected by congenital infectious disease					2	6		1		5	1	2	2	0	3	0	0	0	2	0	1	15	10
hemorrhagic/hematological fetal disorders					4	2			3	1	1			3	2	1						11	6
hydrops fetalis not due to haemolytic disease					31	22	25	28	32	30	40	26	38	38	26	40	32	27	33	31	27	208	318
multiple gestation									1	2	2	5	3	1	5	7	9	5	13	22	30	5	100
other fetal/placental/membrane/amniotic fluid problems	15	6	6	5						8	21	7	7	0	2	1	1	1	2	3	3	61	27
exposure to communicable disease	55	58	36	18	19	17	11	24	4	6	6	9		11							3	254	23
need for rubella immunization	8	8	4	3	4	0	4	2	0	2	0											35	0
suspected drug exposure	173	126	96	42																		437	0
suspected radiation exposure	36	21	14	10																		81	0
unknown	545	519	594	593	261	227	221	207	76	64	69	17	15	6	7	7	4	5	1	2	4	3,376	68
TOTAL	1742	1752	1825	1674	1,832	1,929	1,850	1,840	1,813	1,833	1,722	1,894	1,941	1,894	1,916	2,036	1,939	1,988	2,085	2,290	2,307	19,812	20,290

type of fetal disorder	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	total, 1991-2001	total, 2002-2011
fetal malformation of nervous system	28.13	29.62	28.55	27.78	26.97	26.96	22.92	24.35	23.94	25.10	23.87	21.70	25.04	23.39	23.80	25.05	24.39	23.99	23.79	22.79	23.41	26.18	23.73
other fetal malformations					20.80	18.77	21.62	22.45	23.00	22.75	21.25	25.24	22.21	23.13	21.03	22.20	21.25	24.09	24.89	24.98	22.28	13.91	23.15
Down's syndrome					15.45	15.71	17.08	18.21	18.15	18.99	20.15	20.17	20.66	22.12	22.39	21.41	22.54	21.93	22.45	21.05	22.19	11.41	21.70
other/unspecified chromosomal abnormalities	19.58	22.95	24.82	26.46	10.10	13.37	14.27	12.66	14.73	14.68	14.17	17.16	15.87	16.21	16.65	16.50	15.99	15.24	14.72	15.24	16.38	16.95	15.98
family history of heritable disorder	4.54	5.31	5.53	5.68	4.97	5.55	4.32	3.70	7.72	7.53	6.56	5.44	6.13	5.91	6.89	5.94	7.48	7.04	6.91	7.90	6.81	5.58	6.67
other specified issues	16.48	12.50	8.55	4.66	7.48	7.88	7.84	7.39	8.27	7.47	9.99	9.40	8.96	8.92	8.56	8.45	7.99	7.39	6.95	7.86	8.76	8.93	8.31
unknown	31.29	29.62	32.55	35.42	14.25	11.77	11.95	11.25	4.19	3.49	4.01	0.90	0.77	0.32	0.37	0.34	0.21	0.25	0.05	0.09	0.17	17.04	0.34
TOTAL	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00	99.64	100.00	99.69	99.90	99.85	99.95	99.76	99.91	100.00	100.00	99.87

reason for abortion	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	total known, 1991-2011	% of all abortions, reported years
selective terminations, all reasons (number of fetuses)		37	32	103	75	97	86	88	65	46	49	56	65	64	76	64	47	54	71	85	81	1,341	0.038
Down's syndrome (DOH)					283	303	316	335	329	348	347	382	401	419	429	436	437	436	468	482	512	6,663	0.216
Down's syndrome (NDSCR)	369	441	507	542	578	654	664	618	648	684	677	709	694	814	830	886	907	936	904	942		14,004	0.402
Edward's syndrome (DOH)					61	86	96	91	95	111	108	138	139	135	151	123	129	143	144	164	176	2,090	0.068
Edward's syndrome (NDSCR)													46	184	228	266	302	339	340	344		2,049	0.135
Patau's syndrome (DOH)					30	41	36	31	39	43	44	50	44	54	52	46	63	61	45	51	54	784	0.025
Patau's syndrome (NDSCR)													23	100	94	131	144	111	107	151		861	0.057
cleft lip and cleft palate (DOH)					6	5			3	9	2	1	2	4	5	2	0	2	3	7	4	55	0.002
cleft lip and cleft palate (BINOCAR)																	57		34	45		136	0.024