The contentious issue of abortion is riddled with jabberwocky...terminology that is contradictory, obsolete, ambiguous and misleading [2]. Both the lay and professional literature uses obstetrical terms improperly, including "abortion." Recent press coverage of Dr. George Tiller's murder has added to this confusion, with misleading language such as "late-term" abortion [3]. Suboptimal terminology is widespread in obstetrics; indeed, many traditional terms are inaccurate, insensitive or stigmatizing. Examples include "fetal wastage," "incompetent cervix," "blighted ovum" and "pregnancy failure" [4]. Regarding abortion, some misuse of terms is inadvertent, while other misuse is intentional. A third of a century after Roe v. Wade, some physicians still use archaic euphemisms for abortion, apparently to avoid offense. The net effect is confusion of the public and medical profession about the nature and scope of abortion practice. In this commentary, we highlight several examples of archaic or suboptimal abortion terminology and suggest better language.
展开▼
