Obstetrics Abortion

Fetal pain Wikipedia

Fetal pain is a subject of intense political and academic debate as part of the controversy over abortion. Determining the stage of pregnancy at which a fetus is able to feel pain could have a significant effect on abortion laws and practices.

Most scientists now believe that a fetus is able to feel physical pain ref|AboPain sometime during the pregnancy. The question of exactly when this ability develops is disputed. Some academics argue that it appears as early as seven weeks after conception. Others claim that pain cannot be felt until the third trimester of pregnancy.

Multiple nerve systems are involved in the sensation of pain. When the brain and nervous system are fully developed, the sensation is triggered by Pain#pain_receptors|pain receptors reacting to some stimulus. The resulting signal travels via the peripheral nervous system to nociceptors associated with the spinal column. It then travels up the spinal column to the thalamus, and onward to the cerebral cortex, where it is finally interpreted as a painful sensation.

The different systems involved in pain develop at different stages of gestation. Pain receptors and nociceptors are present as early as seven weeks post-conception. The spinal column and the thalamus are functional at about thirteen weeks. However, the final necessary connections within the cerebral cortex are not developed until about the twenty-sixth week. Whether pain is possible before all the systems are developed and all the connections are made is the question at the heart of the fetal pain controversy.

Researchers who believe that a fetus can feel pain early, as soon as some of the necessary nerves are available, tend to have a pro-life stance. There is some concern that strong views on both sides of the abortion debate may be influencing the interpretation of research findings.

Last Modified:   2005-12-23