Doctors used to believe that vaginal termination of pregnancy carried an increased risk of miscarriage in subsequent pregnancies. But this is not so. Before abortion became legal, some terminations were carried out late in the pregnancy, as there were no medical resources. If the cervix was forcibly dilated, an in competent cervix could be the result.

Now with early pregnancy diagnosis and the ability to terminate earlier, cervical damage should not be as great a problem. There are also ways of avoiding cervical trauma during procedures. Your doctor may use prostaglandins or laminaria the night before the abortion to dilate the cervix slowly and thus avoid the use of mechanical dilators.

Of course, it is a good idea to limit the number of induced abortions. If you have undergone a previous termination of pregnancy, do not be shy about letting your doctor know—just in case cervical incompetence dose prove to be a problem. At least he can be aware of the potential for such a problem.