In medical terminology, the term “abortion” can mean a planned termination of a pregnancy or a pregnancy that ends in miscarriage. However, when most people refer to abortion, they mean an induced abortion. 

Abortion statistics

According to the Guttmacher Institute, an estimated 65.4 percent of abortions were conducted when a woman was 8 weeks pregnant or earlier. An estimated 88 percent of abortions occur in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.  

If you’ve had an induced abortion, you may be concerned about what that means for future fertility and pregnancies. However, having an abortion doesn’t usually affect your ability to get pregnant again at a later time.  

Abortion complications

Regarding extremely rare complications, there are two significant issues that may develop and later affect fertility. To emphasise, both are rare, and more associated with surgical termination. These are known as Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) and Asherman’s Syndrome. 

• PID is caused by infection which ascends from the vagina into the uterus, and sometimes up to the fallopian tubes. This can cause scarring of the tubes, which may lead to problems fertilizing the egg. PID is usually caused by STIs like chlamydia, or sexually-associated infections like bacterial vaginosis – yet another reason why it’s important to have regular screening for STIs!  
• Asherman’s Syndrome is when scarring develops between the walls of the uterus or the cervix in response to having the lining of the uterus removed. This can cause the walls to stick together and decrease fertility. However, this is associated with having had multiple surgeries on the walls of the uterus (at least more than two), and is treatable. 

Most medical experts agree that abortion — whether medical or surgical — is safe. No more than 2% of people report complications, and most complications that do occur are easily treated with follow-up care. 

What about abortions in the second or third trimester? 

Later-term abortions are uncommon. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), just 6.2% of abortions in 2019 happened at 14–20 weeks’ gestation. Fewer than 1% of all U.S. abortions were performed at 21 weeks or later. 

People most commonly opt for abortions later in pregnancy if they’ve learned of severe health complications affecting the fetus, developed severe health complications themselves, or were denied an abortion earlier on. 

Summary 

Abortion doesn’t usually affect your ability to get pregnant again at a later time.  

When an abortion is done in a clean, safe medical environment, most procedures will not affect fertility. However, always talk to your doctor about any concerns you have. 

This article was medically reviewed by Dr. José Luis Rivas Aguilar, MD, OBGYN & Infertility Specialist at PMH Fertility Center