Hello and welcome to the zero to finals podcast. My name is Tom and in this episode I'm going to be going

through termination of pregnancy. And you can find written notes on this topic at zero tofinals.com

slash TOP or in the early pregnancy section of the zeroals, obstetrics and gynecology book.

So let's get straight into it.

A termination of pregnancy or T-O-P, also called an abortion, involves an elective procedure

to end a pregnancy.

Let's start by talking about the legal requirements.

In the UK, the legal framework for a termination of pregnancy is the 1967 Abortion Act.

The 1990 Human Fertilization and Embryology Act altered and expanded the criteria for an abortion, and it reduced the latest

gestational age where an abortion is legal from 28 weeks to 24 weeks. There are specific criteria

required to justify the decision to proceed with an abortion. The following is a simplified version of these criteria.

An abortion can be performed before 24 weeks

if continuing the pregnancy involves a greater risk

to the physical or mental health of the woman

or existing children in the family.

This threshold for when the risk of continuing the pregnancy

will outweigh the risk of terminating the pregnancy

is a matter of clinical judgment and opinion of the medical practitioners.

There are certain situations where an abortion can be performed at any time during the pregnancy,

including after 24 weeks, and these include if continuing the pregnancy is likely to risk the life

of the woman, terminating the pregnancy will prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the woman,

or there is substantial risk that the child would suffer physical or mental abnormalities

...