In most cases, your cervix doesn’t need to be prepped or dilated for a vacuum aspiration (suction abortion). But if you’re more than about 10-12 weeks pregnant, your doctor may take steps to open your cervix a bit so the medical tools can get to your uterus. She’ll probably put little sticks made of sterilized seaweed that absorb moisture and expand, called laminaria, into your cervix.
Once you’re ready for the procedure, you'll lie on an exam table with your feet in stirrups like you’re having a pelvic exam.
Your doctor will put a medical tool called a speculum into your vagina to keep it open. Then she'll swab your vagina and cervix with an antiseptic solution called Betadine.
She’ll inject an anesthetic into the cervix to numb it, holding your cervix in place with a grasping instrument. She’ll then insert a small tube attached to either a hand-held syringe or a suction machine into your uterus, and clear out its contents. From start to finish, the procedure takes several minutes.
Afterward, your doctor will check to make sure that the procedure was successful, and then let you rest for about 30 minutes under observation.