Henry Morgentaler, the celebrated abortionist and wit, once likened abortion to pulling a tooth. The death of a woman in the dentist chair, however, would undoubtedly be front-page news. That abortion is rather less trivial than oral extraction is attested to by the lengths to which pro-choicers go to conceal the fatalities occasioned by their "uneventful" technique.

Linda Henriksen, 44, was 15 weeks pregnant when she went to Vancouver Hospital Surgical Day Care Centre last April 23. According to the report of Vancouver coroner Jeannine Robinson, Henriksen's unborn baby had been diagnosed with Trisomy 21- commonly known as Down's syndrome - and was scheduled for a "therapeutic abortion" to terminate the pregnancy.

Henriksen died within minutes of what the coroner reported as an otherwise "uneventful" five-minute procedure, conducted under general anaesthetic. Her death was classified as "natural" because an autopsy revealed that she suffered from primary pulmonary hypertension - manifested by thickening of the heart wall - a condition "without a demonstrable cause" that mostly affects women and is frequently unknown until the victim suddenly dies. Dr. Robinson ruled that Henriksen's pregnancy and abortion were 'contributing factors' in her death.

Kelowna Pro-life activist Ted Gerk wonders if Henriksen demonstrated any symptoms that would have precluded surgery. (The coroners report does not discuss her admitting conditions.) Mr. Gerk also wonders if she was informed of abortion's inherent risks. In 1992 an inquiry was held into the death of Myrna George, after an abortion in Terrace. The coroner found that George was not satisfactorily informed of the risks of the surgery and it recommended all women in British Columbia be advised in writing of the possible complications, including death, of abortion.

Vancouver Hospital failed to answer a request last week for a copy of the consent forms, if any, provided to women undergoing abortions at the hospital; it also refused to confirm that Ms. Henriksen had given informed consent to her abortion.

Mr Gerk argues that the label "therapeutic abortion" was misapplied in this case. "There is no medical reason to kill a Down's baby," he says. Henriksen's death would have remained secret had not an unidentified hospital employee leaked it to a pro-life group months later. Pro-lifers can hardly be blamed for their curiosity. Numerous cases of incompetence and criminal neglect resulting in the deaths of women have been reported in several American states in recent months. Last month, for example, John Biskind, abortionist at the A-Z Women's Center in Phoenix and clinic administrator Carol Stuart pleaded not guilty to charges of manslaughter in the death of 33-year-old Lou Anne Herron after an abortion last April. According to the Phoenix police investgation report, the patient's uterus was perforated but Dr. Biskind refused to check her heavy bleeding at one point because he was too busy eating lunch. Police also reported that the clinic was understaffed and substitutes were so poorly trained they did not know where pens were kept. When paramedics were finally called to the scene hours after Herron began hemorrhaging, Capt. Arnie of the Phoenix Fire Department told police that the gurney and sheets Herron lay on were soaked with blood and she appeared pale, cold and to have been dead for some time.