How are abortions carried out?
In the fist 8 weeks they can give a pill that causes everything to be expelled from the uterus. After that, there are several other methods that can be used. First Trimester (1-12 weeks) 1. Suction curettage – The physician dilates (opens) the cervix with mechanical dilators or laminaria (a porous substance that is typically inserted a day before the abortion). During the abortion, the doctor attaches tubing to a suction machine and inserts the tubing into the uterus. The suction created by the vacuum pulls the unborn baby’s body apart and detaches the placenta from the wall of the uterus, sucking the fetal parts and placenta into a collection bottle. 2. Dilation and Curettage (D&C, or sharpe curettage) – This method is not as common since it requires more dilation and more time, and is considered less safe than suction curettage. The cervix is dilated and a curette, or loop-shaped knife, is inserted into the uterus to pull the unborn baby’s body apart and detach the placenta from the
FIRST TRIMESTER: Vacuum Aspiration and Curettage The main method of early surgical abortion is vacuum aspiration, which can be accomplished using a handheld syringe (manual vacuum aspiration) or an electric pump (electric vacuum aspiration).(6) “In 1994, 97% of abortions were performed by vacuum aspiration (suction curettage).”(5) This method is a safe and simple way of emptying the contents of the uterus with minimal cervical dilation.(5) If necessary, the cervix can be dilated with a hydrophobic dilator such as Laminar or Dilan or mechanical dilation can be accomplished with Pratt-type dilators. A uterine aspiration cannula of appropriate size is then inserted into the uterus, and the contents are vacuumed out either manually or with an electric pump. Once the uterus appears to be empty, systematic curettage, or light scraping of the inner walls of the uterus, is performed to assess the completeness of the vacuum evacuation. SECOND TRIMESTER: Dilation and Evacuation (DE) The major me
