Another researcher has a likely identity for the woman Life Dynamics dubbed "Wendy" Roe. Since I have seen no sign that the woman's family went public, I will continue to refer to her as Wendy.
Wendy was 23 years old and 16 weeks pregnant when she sought an abortion at community hospital in a small North Carolina town in 1972. Wendy was black, which placed her at higher risk of death from safe, legal abortion.
Wendy's physician chose the saline technique, but overestimated the age of the fetus, and administered too much hypertonic saline. The saline got into Wendy's bloodstream.
Wendy went into convulsions and developed disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC), a clotting disorder. She died within the hour before expelling the fetus, leaving two children motherless.
Sources:
- "Fatal Pulmonary Embolism During Legal Induced Abortion in the United States from 1972-1985," Lawson, Herschel W., MD, Atrash, Hani K., MD, MPH, Franks, Adele L., MD, American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 162, No. 4, April 1990, p. 986-990
- Death certificate
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