Reference Terms
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Abortion
An abortion is the removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus from the uterus, resulting in or caused by its death. This can occur spontaneously as a miscarriage, or be artificially induced through chemical, surgical or other means. Commonly, "abortion" refers to an induced procedure at any point in the pregnancy; medically, it is defined as a miscarriage or induced termination before twenty weeks' gestation, which is considered nonviable.
A pregnancy that ends earlier than 37 complete weeks of gestation, and where an infant is born and survives, is termed a premature birth. A pregnancy that ends with an infant dead upon birth at any gestational stage, due to causes including spontaneous abortion or complications during delivery, is termed a stillbirth.
In common parlance, the term "abortion" is synonymous with induced abortion of a human fetus. However, in medical texts, the word 'abortion' can also refer to spontaneous abortion (miscarriage).
Related Stories
1
2
Health & Medicine News
September 4, 2026
Sep. 4, 2026 A substance found in edible sea squirts appeared to reverse several signs of aging in older mice. Plasmalogen supplements improved memory and learning, strengthened connections between brain cells, reduced inflammation, and even helped the mice grow ...
Sep. 4, 2026 UCLA researchers have discovered two powerful influences that help guide how the human brain forms before birth. Radial glia, stem cells responsible for producing much of the cerebral cortex, change their behavior depending on how they process ...
Sep. 3, 2026 Duke researchers developed an injectable scaffold that helped stroke-damaged brains grow new blood vessels, support nerve regrowth, and recover movement in mice. The treatment appears to work partly by recruiting the body’s own immune cells, ...
Sep. 3, 2026 Scientists discovered that more than 500 species of vesper bats possess two separate sets of antibody genes, an immune arrangement never before found in mammals. The surprising system could help explain how bats tolerate so many viruses without ...
Sep. 3, 2026 Aging may be partly fueled by immune cells losing their ability to clear away damaged, inflammation-promoting cells. Blocking a single receptor restored that cleanup process in mice, reducing inflammation and helping their organs, muscles, and ...
Sep. 2, 2026 Some of the attention patterns that make ADHD challenging may also help spark creativity by allowing the brain to explore more ideas and unexpected connections. Researchers think creative activities could potentially channel this “defocused ...
Sep. 2, 2026 Sitting for long, uninterrupted stretches may carry greater health risks than sitting the same amount of time in shorter bouts. Researchers found that each extra hour of prolonged sedentary behavior was associated with a 9% higher risk of cancer ...
Sep. 2, 2026 “Broken heart syndrome” can mimic a heart attack so closely that patients often need invasive testing to tell the difference. Researchers have now developed the BioTAK score, which combines ...
Sep. 2, 2026 Brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s may begin at least seven years before amyloid plaques become detectable with current PET scans. Researchers uncovered the signal by tracking healthy older adults with repeated brain imaging over nearly 20 ...
Sep. 2, 2026 Following nearly 10,000 older women for 10 years, researchers found that tea drinking was associated with slightly higher hip bone density. Moderate coffee consumption did not appear harmful, but drinking more than five cups a day was linked to ...
Sep. 1, 2026 Where you live in early adulthood may quietly shape your heart health for decades. Researchers found that adverse neighborhood conditions were linked to a higher risk of coronary artery calcification in midlife, an early warning sign of ...
Sep. 1, 2026 Obesity appears to leave a molecular imprint on key immune cells that may persist for 5 to 10 years after weight loss. This long-lasting “obesity memory” could help explain why some obesity-related health risks remain elevated even after body ...
Latest Headlines
updated 12:56 pm ET
Sep. 4, 2026 Slow breathing with a prolonged exhale made people more willing to take risks by changing heart activity and increasing the brain’s sensitivity to rewards. The findings suggest that something as ...
Sep. 1, 2026 Mindfulness, gratitude, and optimism training may improve blood pressure, inflammation, and other heart-health measures within just eight to 12 weeks. The strongest programs paired daily practice ...
Sep. 1, 2026 A study of people over 90 found that dementia risk remains strongly shaped by sex, race and genetics, with women and black participants facing notably higher risks. Intriguingly, some people stayed ...
Sep. 1, 2026 A once-nightly pill cut breathing interruptions by about 44% in a major phase 3 sleep apnea trial, while improving oxygen levels and disease severity. By strengthening the muscles that keep the ...
Aug. 31, 2026 Scientists discovered that human microglia, immune cells that help shape developing brain circuits, can take four to eight years to mature instead of just weeks as they do in mice. The unusually slow ...
Aug. 31, 2026 Researchers discovered a possible way cancer cells hide from the immune system: they build a thick, sugar-rich coating around themselves. High blood sugar can strengthen this protective shield under ...
Aug. 31, 2026 Two widely used zero-calorie sweeteners, sucralose and stevia, may have effects that linger far longer than the sweet taste itself. In mice, researchers found that both sweeteners altered the gut ...
Aug. 31, 2026 Scientists have created an injectable gel that can remain inside arthritic joints for weeks, slowly releasing medication while also improving lubrication. The approach could make it easier to deliver ...
Aug. 31, 2026 A simple waist measurement may be nearly as effective as more complicated methods for detecting unhealthy levels of body fat. Researchers also found that BMI alone missed many people with obesity, ...
Aug. 31, 2026 Alcohol-related liver disease may trap damaged liver cells in a regenerative limbo, preventing the organ from rebuilding itself even after drinking stops. Researchers linked the problem to ...