Comment on the decision of the german bishops regarding the use of emergency contraception in rape victims
On 21st February this year, the German Episco- pal Conference published a document in which it stated that the morning-after pill (levonorge- strel) could be used in the case of rape, provided that the drug had a solely contraceptive effect. This report sparked intense controversy, since it appears...
| Autores: | , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | informe técnico |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2013 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir |
| Repositorio: | RIUCV. Repositorio de la Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir |
| Idioma: | inglés |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:riucv.ucv.es:20.500.12466/900 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12466/900 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Bishops Rape Abortion Unwanted pregnancy Bioethics 32 Ciencias Médicas |
| Sumario: | On 21st February this year, the German Episco- pal Conference published a document in which it stated that the morning-after pill (levonorge- strel) could be used in the case of rape, provided that the drug had a solely contraceptive effect. This report sparked intense controversy, since it appears that levonorgestrel has more than just contraceptive activity. In relation to this, we have written the arti- cle included herein, in which we evaluated the mechanism of action of levonorgestrel, reaching the conclusion that on certain occasions (possi- bly around 50% of cases), it prevents pregnancy after unprotected sexual intercourse by an an- ti-implantation, i.e. abortive mechanism. If this is this case, it seems unlikely that, from a moral point of view, the morning-after pill could be used to prevent pregnancy after rape. |
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