What is Manual Vacuum Aspiration (MVA)?
MVA is performed with the use of a handheld syringe as a source of suction for removing uterine contents. The procedure time is 5–15 minutes and is performed in settings such as a doctor’s office, clinic or emergency room. A patient typically leaves a doctor’s office or a clinic within two hours. Typically, cervical anesthesia is used in combination with orally administered ibuprofen. When can MVA be used to terminate a pregnancy? It can be used to induce abortion in women as early as three weeks after the beginning of her last menstrual cycle and up to 12 weeks gestation. MVA is an important tool for providing emergency care for women with incomplete induced or spontaneous abortions. How effective is MVA at terminating pregnancy? MVA successfully ends first trimester pregnancies 99.5% of the time and carries a minor complication rate of 0.01%. For the 0.5% times the procedure fails, it is repeated. Who can offer MVA? Qualified health care providers, including physicians and mid-level
