Illegal abortion is a serious and preventable public health problem affecting women of reproductive age. Despite the implementation of a law legalising abortion in 1996 in South Africa, a high number of illegal abortions are still being carried out. The objective of this study
the trend of illegal abortion in the Transkei sub-region of South Africa (1996–2014). This is a retrospective record review, a descriptive study on criminal abortion. All aborted foetuses brought for medico-legal examination at the Mthatha Forensic Pathology Laboratory between
1996 and 2014 were recorded in the post-mortem register. In total 4986 unnatural deaths among females were recorded, which accounted for 21.51% of all unnatural deaths in this region from 1996 to 2014. Abortus material or products of conception ranked ninth in the list of autopsiedcases of unnatural deaths; these numbered 208(4.17%) of all autopsied non-natural deaths. The average number of foetal deaths were 10.94 (5.2%) each year. This was highest (17.31%) in 2010, and lowest (0.48%) in 1997 in this study.There is an increasing trend ofillegal abortion in the Transkei sub-region of South Africa. Government must pay attention to the issue of illegal abortion in this region.

Keywords: Illegal Abortion; Foetuses; Death