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Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy before the fetus can survive outside the uterus. Early abortion refers to an abortion occurring before the 12th week of gestation. Historically, abortion was largely legal in Western societies before the 1800s, often accepted in ancient Greece and Rome. However, attitudes shifted, and by the early 1900s, most U.S. states had banned abortion.123

Contemporary abortion procedures include medication abortion, which uses drugs like mifepristone and misoprostol, and surgical procedures such as vacuum aspiration and dilation and evacuation (D&E). Emergency contraception, like Plan B, is distinct from abortion drugs and prevents pregnancy before it begins.4

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