This is the standard D&E (Dilation and Evacuation) procedure — often called “dismemberment abortion.”
It is the most common method for abortions after 13–16 weeks, accounts for the vast majority of late-second-trimester cases, and is used in approximately 95% of all surgical abortions performed after 13 weeks in the United States.
How It Works (Second Trimester, Typically 13–24+ Weeks)
- The cervix is dilated, often over 1–2 days.
- The abortionist inserts forceps — large grasping clamps with teeth — into the uterus.
- They grasp parts of the live fetus (arms, legs, torso) and tear them off one by one, pulling the pieces out through the cervix.
- The spine is often snapped or crushed during extraction. The skull is usually crushed last because it is the largest part and must be decompressed to pass through the dilated cervix.
- The dismembered pieces are reassembled on a tray to ensure nothing is left behind in the uterus.
- Suction (vacuum aspiration) and scraping (curettage) are then used to clean out any remaining tissue or placenta.
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