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Abortion Care in Massachusetts - WHAT TO EXPECT
Your Appointment
Your appointment for an abortion will probably take 3 to 5 hours. It may include:
You will speak to a counselor about your choices and how an abortion is done. If you choose to have an abortion, you will have the abortion procedure. After the procedure, you may rest for 30 minutes or more. Then you will go home. You may have a follow-up appointment after 2 weeks.
Abortion
Abortion means ending a pregnancy early. Sometimes a pregnancy ends by itself. When that happens, it is called a spontaneous abortion or miscarriage. Sometimes a woman chooses to end her pregnancy. There are many reasons why she may do this. When this happens, it is called an induced abortion.
Abortion Procedures
There are 2 main types of abortions done in clinics and doctors’ offices. One involves a surgical or "aspiration” procedure and the other involves taking medicine. Both types of abortion are very safe. Less than 1 in 100,000 women who have an abortion will have a very serious complication from the abortion.2 We can compare this to the risk of having a baby: more than 1 in 10,000 women who have a baby have a very serious complication from the pregnancy.2
The 2 main types of abortions that are done in clinics and doctors’ offices are described below.
There are many different types of abortions done in hospitals. If you are going to have an abortion in a hospital, ask your doctors exactly what the procedure will be.
Surgical or "Aspiration” Abortion
A surgical or "aspiration” abortion is a procedure that uses suction to remove the pregnancy from the uterus (womb). A tool called a speculum is put into the vagina (just like in a PAP smear exam) to hold it open. Narrow instruments are used to slightly open (dilate) the cervix (neck of the womb).3 A very small tube is put into the uterus by going through the cervix.3 A suction machine is attached to this small tube and the pregnancy is removed. This procedure usually takes between 5 and 20 minutes. The more weeks the pregnancy is, the longer it takes.
There is usually some cramping pain during the procedure, but the cramps finish shortly after it is done. There are various types of medication used for reducing pain during surgical or "aspiration” abortions.3 Some make you very sleepy and some do not. Some are pills; some are given intravenously (IV); some are given by injection. There are extra charges for some pain medications. When you call a clinic or doctor’s office about an abortion, ask what kind of pain medications are given and if there are extra charges for them.
Medication Abortion
In medication abortion, a woman takes 2 medicines to end the pregnancy.4 The woman swallows the first medicine in the clinic or office. This medicine stops the pregnancy. She takes the second medicine home and uses it the next day. The second medicine makes her expel the pregnancy like a miscarriage. She takes some pain medication to help with the cramping pain when she expels the pregnancy.4 Medication succeeds in ending pregnancy more than 95% of the time. If the medication fails to end the pregnancy, a surgical or "aspiration” abortion may then be necessary.4 Medication abortion can be used for pregnancies that are up to 9 weeks along.
The Rh Factor and Rhogam
When you have an abortion, your blood will be tested for the "Rh factor” to see if you are "Rh-negative” or "Rh-positive”.
Being "Rh-negative” means that you don’t have a certain protein on the surface of your red blood cells. If you do have it, you’re "Rh-positive”.5
Being "Rh-negative” is neither good nor bad, but it can become a serious issue if you’re pregnant with a fetus that is "Rh-positive”. In this case, your body can make antibodies to the fetus. These antibodies will stay in your body and the next time you are pregnant with an "Rh-positive” fetus, the antibodies may hurt the fetus.
To prevent this problem, if the blood test shows that you are "Rh-negative”, you will be given an injection of a medicine called "Rhogam” at the time of your abortion. The Rhogam prevents your body from making antibodies to the fetus.5
Usually, there is an extra charge for the Rhogam injection. When you make your appointment for an abortion, ask how much extra this injection will cost.
Your appointment for an abortion will probably take 3 to 5 hours. It may include:
- a pregnancy test
- a blood test for anemia (low blood iron)
- a blood test for the "Rh factor” (see below)
- an ultrasound to see how many weeks pregnant you are
You will speak to a counselor about your choices and how an abortion is done. If you choose to have an abortion, you will have the abortion procedure. After the procedure, you may rest for 30 minutes or more. Then you will go home. You may have a follow-up appointment after 2 weeks.
Abortion
Abortion means ending a pregnancy early. Sometimes a pregnancy ends by itself. When that happens, it is called a spontaneous abortion or miscarriage. Sometimes a woman chooses to end her pregnancy. There are many reasons why she may do this. When this happens, it is called an induced abortion.
Abortion Procedures
There are 2 main types of abortions done in clinics and doctors’ offices. One involves a surgical or "aspiration” procedure and the other involves taking medicine. Both types of abortion are very safe. Less than 1 in 100,000 women who have an abortion will have a very serious complication from the abortion.2 We can compare this to the risk of having a baby: more than 1 in 10,000 women who have a baby have a very serious complication from the pregnancy.2
The 2 main types of abortions that are done in clinics and doctors’ offices are described below.
There are many different types of abortions done in hospitals. If you are going to have an abortion in a hospital, ask your doctors exactly what the procedure will be.
Surgical or "Aspiration” Abortion
A surgical or "aspiration” abortion is a procedure that uses suction to remove the pregnancy from the uterus (womb). A tool called a speculum is put into the vagina (just like in a PAP smear exam) to hold it open. Narrow instruments are used to slightly open (dilate) the cervix (neck of the womb).3 A very small tube is put into the uterus by going through the cervix.3 A suction machine is attached to this small tube and the pregnancy is removed. This procedure usually takes between 5 and 20 minutes. The more weeks the pregnancy is, the longer it takes.
There is usually some cramping pain during the procedure, but the cramps finish shortly after it is done. There are various types of medication used for reducing pain during surgical or "aspiration” abortions.3 Some make you very sleepy and some do not. Some are pills; some are given intravenously (IV); some are given by injection. There are extra charges for some pain medications. When you call a clinic or doctor’s office about an abortion, ask what kind of pain medications are given and if there are extra charges for them.
Medication Abortion
In medication abortion, a woman takes 2 medicines to end the pregnancy.4 The woman swallows the first medicine in the clinic or office. This medicine stops the pregnancy. She takes the second medicine home and uses it the next day. The second medicine makes her expel the pregnancy like a miscarriage. She takes some pain medication to help with the cramping pain when she expels the pregnancy.4 Medication succeeds in ending pregnancy more than 95% of the time. If the medication fails to end the pregnancy, a surgical or "aspiration” abortion may then be necessary.4 Medication abortion can be used for pregnancies that are up to 9 weeks along.
The Rh Factor and Rhogam
When you have an abortion, your blood will be tested for the "Rh factor” to see if you are "Rh-negative” or "Rh-positive”.
Being "Rh-negative” means that you don’t have a certain protein on the surface of your red blood cells. If you do have it, you’re "Rh-positive”.5
Being "Rh-negative” is neither good nor bad, but it can become a serious issue if you’re pregnant with a fetus that is "Rh-positive”. In this case, your body can make antibodies to the fetus. These antibodies will stay in your body and the next time you are pregnant with an "Rh-positive” fetus, the antibodies may hurt the fetus.
To prevent this problem, if the blood test shows that you are "Rh-negative”, you will be given an injection of a medicine called "Rhogam” at the time of your abortion. The Rhogam prevents your body from making antibodies to the fetus.5
Usually, there is an extra charge for the Rhogam injection. When you make your appointment for an abortion, ask how much extra this injection will cost.
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