§ 23. Mr. AltonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many late abortions of pre-born children occurred after 18 weeks gestation during the last 12 months for which figures are available.
§ Mr. SackvilleThere were 5,061 abortions over 18 weeks notified under the Abortion Act 1967 in England and Wales in the period 1 October 1990 to 31 September 1991, 2.8 per cent. of the total number.
§ Mr. AltonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many sterilisation and abortion operations have been performed on mentally disabled women in the last 12 months for which figures are available; what criteria were used in arriving at these decisions; and how many girls, under the age of 16 years, have been sterilised in the last 12 months for which figures are available, and on what grounds.
§ Mr. SackvilleInformation about the number of sterilisation operations is not available in the form requested. Details of the medical condition recorded on abortion notification forms—including unspecified mental retardation—are given in table 27 of the 1990 "Abortion Statistics" (Series AB No. 17) published by the Office of 475W Population Censuses and Surveys, a copy of which is available in the Library. The criteria for reaching decisions vary from case to case and can involve relatives and carers, and possibly reference to the courts. The national health service "Hospital Episode Statistics" show that only one female sterilisation operation was performed on a patient under the age of 16 in England in 1990–91.
§ Mr. AltonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines are issued to health authorities concerning the use of amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling tests; how many tests were made under each procedure in the last year for which figures are available; how many pregnancies ended in spontaneous abortions following testing; how many ended in clinical abortions; how many babies born after being tested by CVS were discovered to have a physical or mental handicap; what evidence she has of links between the CVS test and disability; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. SackvilleGuidelines to providers of maternity services on the use of tests for fetal abnormalities are contained in the first report of the Maternity Services Advisory Committee: "Maternity Care in Action—Antenatal Care", at paragraph 4.27. Copies are available in the Library. Information on the number of tests carried out under each procedure is not held centrally.
Information on the number of pregnancies which end in miscarriage following testing is not held centrally. Studies have indicated that amniocentesis is associated with miscarriage in one or two cases in every 200 where the procedure is used. It is more difficult to estimate the level of the association between miscarriage and chorionic villus sampling (CVS), because studies are unable to identify women who would have miscarried among those who request and have termination of pregnancy following a diagnosis of cytogenic abnormality. A recent randomised controlled trial carried out by the Medical Research Council compared CVS with amniocentesis and found that a woman undergoing CVS has a one in 20 less chance of a successful outcome to her pregnancy than a woman undergoing amniocentesis in the second trimester of pregnancy.
Information on the number of pregnancies which ended in a termination following testing is not held centrally. It is likely that the majority of such terminations would be for chromosomal abnormality in the fetus, and in 1990 this condition was reported in 273 terminations (England and Wales).
Following reports of a possible association between the use of CVS and the occurrence of limb reduction defects, an investigation was made by the European registration of congenital anomalies and twins (EUROCAT) into seven of its registries, covering 600,000 births. The investigation did not demonstrate a significantly increased risk associated with exposure to CVS in the areas covered by these seven registries.
We are not aware of any evidence linking CVS with mental handicap.