Almost 600 Otago women had voluntary, legal abortions during the 12 months to December 2011, bringing the region's annual abortion rate to its lowest point in at least eight years.
In total, 590 women listed as Otago residents had abortions last year, 62 fewer than in 2010 and 81 fewer than in the year before.
Statistics New Zealand data for the region from 2004 showed the number of abortions peaked slightly in 2008, when 764 were recorded.
But, overall, fewer Otago women were having abortions, with 751 in 2007, 698 in 2006, 687 in 2005 and 752 in 2004.
National abortion rates were also declining.
Among the agencies in Otago that dealt with women pre- or post-abortion, few had specific data about whether there were any trends in the number seeking help or accessing services.
An abortion researcher working for the University of Otago in Christchurch also said it was difficult to identify factors that might affect annual abortion rates.
A Family Planning spokeswoman said that in the two years since a contraception implant became fully subsidised in New Zealand, the number of women using it had grown considerably.
When the implants, effective for about five years, cost up to $300 each, Family Planning issued about 200 nationally each year. However, the number had risen to about 4000 since the subsidy was introduced in August 2010, the spokeswoman said.
"It may be having an impact on some of those [abortion] figures. It's probably a bit early to shout it from the rooftops, but it's interesting," she said.
Dunedin Family Planning clinicians put in 194 contraception implants in the year ended May 31. In the previous 12 months, 114 implants were put in in Dunedin.
Otago and Southland women were able to have abortions at Dunedin Hospital after earthquakes affected Christchurch's clinic, previously the closest option. The Dunedin clinic was likely to stay and another would be established in Invercargill in the next couple of months, a Southern District Health Board spokeswoman said.
Invercargill's clinic was in keeping with national guidelines for access to abortion services and did not reflect increased demand, she said.
In the year to December 2011, there were 15,863 abortions nationwide - the lowest annual number since 1999, when 15,501 abortions were performed.
The country's general abortion rate was down to 17.3 abortions per 1000 women aged between 15 and 44 years, from the 2010 rate of 18.1.
Women aged 20 to 24 had the highest abortion rate (33 per 1000 women), while the median age of women having an abortion was 25 years.
Most abortions (62%) performed last year were a woman's first and 55% were undertaken before the 10th week of pregnancy.
Abortion numbers peaked in New Zealand at 18,511 in 2003, having increased steadily from about 5000 in 1980.
