EDITOR—I have serious doubts about the validity of the data reported by Blanch et al on embryonic abnormalities at medical termination of pregnancy.1 In my experience, embryos are delicate and can be readily disrupted even during careful handling. Although the authors state that “strict criteria were used to distinguish structural abnormalities from traumatic damage,” they give no details of these criteria and whether they have been generally accepted as distinguishing between trauma and abnormality in delicate embryonic tissue. I believe that it is important to specify in how many cases traumatic damage was seen.

Although Blanch et al state …