Emergency ContraceptionMedical Author:
Omnia M Samra, MD
Medical Editor:
Bryan D Cowan, MD
Medical Editor:
Francisco Talavera, PharmD, PhD
Medical Editor:
Lee P Shulman, MD
Emergency Contraception OverviewEmergency contraception (birth control after sexual intercourse) is the use of a drug or device to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sexual intercourse. Emergency contraception can be used when a condom breaks, if a diaphragm or cervical cap slips out of place during intercourse, after a sexual assault, or any time unprotected intercourse occurs. Emergency contraceptive pills are sometimes called the “morning-after pill,” but they are usually effective if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sexual intercourse. Emergency contraceptives available in the United States include emergency contraceptive pills, which contain the same hormones found in birth control pills, and the Copper T380 intrauterine device (IUD). Both the Preven kit and the Plan B kit are pills marketed as emergency contraceptive pills. Emergency contraceptive measures can be taken within the first 72 hours after unprotected sexual intercourse to reduce the possibility of pregnancy. A woman is most likely to become pregnant if sexual intercourse occurs in the few days before or after ovulation (release of an egg from the ovary). Emergency contraceptives should not be used as a contraceptive method in women who are sexually active or planning to become sexually active. They are not as effective as any ongoing contraceptive method. |
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Emergency Contraception
Abortion Overview
Abortion is one of the most common medical procedures performed in the United States each year.ÂMore than 40% of all women will end a pregnancy by abortion at some time in their reproductive lives.
While women of every social class seek terminations, the typical woman who ends her pregnancy is either young, white, unmarried, poor, or over the age of 40.
In the United States and worldwide, abortion (known also as elective termination of pregnancy) remains common.
- The US Supreme Court legalized abortion in the well-known Roe v Wade decision in 1973; currently, there areÂabout 1.2 million abortions are performed each year in the United States.Â
- Worldwide, some 20-30 million legal abortions are performed each year, with another 10-20 million abortions performed illegally. Illegal abortions are unsafe and account for 13% of all deaths of women because of serious complications. Death from ...
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