Westhoff C, Rosenfield A
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Columbia University, New York, NY.
Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol. 1993 Dec;5(6):793-7.
Approximately half a million women in developing countries die each year as a result of complications during pregnancy. Sadly, illegal abortion is one of the five major causes of these deaths. International data suggest that maternal mortality is decreasing in regions where the use of family planning is increasing because of the consequent avoidance of unwanted pregnancies, although accurate data on maternal mortality are difficult to obtain in most developing countries. Use of family planning to delay first births and to increase interpregnancy intervals has the potential to decrease infant mortality by at least 20%. Data from developing countries show that some of this potential has already been realized during the past 20 years, but additional improvement is possible. In countries where maternal mortality is low, women may avoid using contraceptives because of the perceived dangers of the most effective methods. Recent analyses show that cardiovascular risks associated with oral contraceptives are low, and that the net effect of oral contraceptives on cancer of the ovary and endometrium is one of protection. While there remain unanswered questions regarding cervical and breast cancer, the net effect is small at worst.
在发展中国家，每年约有50万妇女死于妊娠并发症。遗憾的是，非法堕胎是这些死亡的五大主要原因之一。国际数据表明，在计划生育使用率不断提高的地区，孕产妇死亡率正在下降，这是因为避免了意外怀孕，不过在大多数发展中国家，很难获得准确的孕产妇死亡率数据。使用计划生育来推迟首次生育并延长两次怀孕之间的间隔，有可能将婴儿死亡率至少降低20%。发展中国家的数据显示，在过去20年里已经实现了部分这种潜力，但仍有可能进一步改善。在孕产妇死亡率较低的国家，由于认为最有效的避孕方法存在危险，妇女可能会避免使用避孕药具。最近的分析表明，口服避孕药相关的心血管风险较低，而且口服避孕药对卵巢癌和子宫内膜癌的总体影响是具有保护作用。虽然关于宫颈癌和乳腺癌仍有未解决的问题，但最坏的情况下总体影响也很小。
