Medical termination of pregnancy in Tunisia

In Tunisia, termination of pregnancy is an irreversible acquired right enjoyed by Tunisian women. It has been legally authorized in our country since 1973. It is voluntary and free before the end of twelve weeks of amenorrhea. Beyond that, it can only be practiced for a serious risk for the mother or a risk of serious illness or infirmity for the unborn child. Notwithstanding the existence of specific legal texts, legal and ethical problems persist and are at the center of a multidisciplinary debate. To do this, we conducted a retrospective descriptive study at the gynecology and obstetrics department of Hédi Chaker University Hospital in Sfax, over a period of seven years from January 2014 to December 2020. We identified, during the study period, 360 medical records of parturients who had undergone a medical termination of pregnancy. The majority of IMGs (76.9%) were carried out in the second trimester of pregnancy. The diagnosis was made by a free doctor in 62.2%. As for the indications for IMG, it was carried out for fetal pathologies in 92.5% and for maternal pathologies in 7.3%.