The relationship between abortion and suicide : a systematic review  = 
La relation entre l’avortement et le suicide : une recension systématique
The Relationship Between Abortion and Suicide: A Systematic Review Geneviève Bloch-Torrico Since 1988, there have been an increasing number of abortions and suicides among Canadian women. Given the controversy on the mental health outcomes for women who procure elective abortions, a systematic review was conducted to determine the relationship between abortion and suicide. After the application of methodologically based selection criteria and extraction rules to minimise bias, the sample of 19 studies was selected for further review. The sample consisted of 2,842,655 female participants, 7 measures of effect from 10 countries; all were observational studies published in English. Nine studies examined abortion, seven considered suicide and three had other focal points (rape, substance use and risks specific to orphaned and abused youth). Studies included females of reproductive age who had an abortion or were preparing to do so. Elective abortion was the only intervention investigated; the outcome variables were completed suicide, attempted suicidal and suicidal ideation. Quality assessment was effected for measures of attempted suicide and suicidal ideation. The results suggested that women who had undergone an abortion experienced a statistically significant increased risk of completed or attempted suicide. The findings concerning suicidal ideation remained tentative due to variability in measurement. The strongest estimates of increased risk occurred when abortion was compared with term pregnancy and when the outcomes involved substance use and experiences of violence. This review offered the only qualitative estimate of suicide risks associated with abortion available in the current literature. Results revealed a moderate to highly increased risk of suicidal behaviours correlated with elective abortion. Evidence-based findings should inform the delivery of abortion and suicide prevention services. Key words: completed suicide, attempted suicide, suicidal ideation, elective abortion, pregnancy termination
completed suicide attempted suicide suicidal ideation elective abortion pregnancy termination