Kevin from Renfrew, in his post of November 30, asks me to delineate "what medical risk prohibits the fetus from being born alive or taken by C-section alive." For the record, I am not an obstetrician/gynecologist however I am familiar with high-risk pregnancies and have participated in the care of several. The medical risks which late term abortion can help alleviate include severe infections, concomitant diseases, and severe psychiatric disorders.

Severe infections often occur after premature rupture of the amniotic membrane and can cause a woman to become seriously ill with infection introduced into the uterus--a condition called chorioamnionitis. This condition can be alleviated by performing an abortion to remove all products of conception which are now the nidus of infection. The fetus is also severly infected and would not fare well. Also, the fetus may be under the limit of gestational viability and unable to survive outside the uterus .

Women can also be diagnosed with serious diseases during pregnancy. Aggressive forms of cancer can necessitate the immediate use of chemotherapeutic regimens which would be grossly toxic (and or lethal) to a developing fetus. In cases like these, an abortion would allow the administration of life sustaining chemotherapy.

Another condition often necessitating abortion is cardiomyopathy. This is a condition where the heart muscle is unable to pump adequately. This condition can be precipitated by pregnancy and the physiologic stress of pregnancy may be too much for the woman to endure and places her at high risk of mortality. Delivery is not an entirely benign process and the extreme physical stress it requires, can be deadly to a heart that is already malfunctioning. In these cases, pregnancy termination can reverse or halt the progression of the cardiomyopathy. This condition can become very life-threatening prior to a fetus reaching viability and also can preclude C-section with its attendant risks.

Severe depression is also an indication for pregnancy termination as are other serious psychiatric diseases.

Another indication is the presence of fetal anomalies that are either incompatible with life outside the uterus or are associated with reduced life spans.

I hope these few examples are helpful in explaining the medical necessity of keeping the procedure of late term abortion legal.