The procedure doesn't usually require an overnight stay unless you have complications. As with any surgery, you'll need to arrive with an empty stomach — no food or drink since the night before.
Most obstetricians prefer to use suction curettage (or vacuum aspiration), because it's thought to be slightly quicker and safer than a traditional D&C, though some will use a combination of the two procedures. For either procedure, the doctor will insert a speculum into your vagina, clean your cervix and vagina with an antiseptic solution, and dilate your cervix with narrow metal rods (unless your cervix is already dilated from having passed some tissue). In most cases, you'll be given sedation through an IV and a local anesthetic to numb your cervix.
For a suction curettage, the doctor will pass a hollow plastic tube through your cervix and suction out the tissue from your uterus. For a traditional D&C, she uses a spoon-shaped instrument called a curette to gently scrape the tissue from the walls of your uterus. The whole thing may take about 15 to 20 minutes, though the tissue removal itself takes less than ten minutes. Finally, if your blood is Rh-negative, you'll need a shot of Rh immune globulin unless the baby's father is Rh-negative, too.
Fitness
