How do you stop a woman from having an abortion? Four U.S. states found the answer when they passed laws strengthening the mandate requiring women to view ultrasound images of their fetuses when considering an abortion.

An ultrasound machine is a piece of medical equipment that uses probes that go either in the body or on the surface, and in this case is used to get a clear picture of the fetus and its development in the womb.

A specific case study test done on over four hundred women, showed that three quarters of women who were undecided about having abortions, decided not to have abortions after seeing ultrasound images of there fetuses. These statistics were almost reversed in a study done in which almost the same amount of women received counseling instead of ultrasound testing. Three quarters of the women went ahead with the abortions. It was concluded that ultrasound testing is a respectful way of allowing a woman to make decisions regarding her well being.