What is "vacuum aspiration"

n. (context medicine English) A method of inducing abortion, during the first trimester of pregnancy, in which the embryo and placenta are drawn off through a narrow tube

n. a method of induced abortion; prior to the 14th week of gestation the embryo and placenta are removed by applying suction to the dilated cervix [syn: suction curettage]

Vacuum or suction aspiration uses aspiration to remove uterine contents through the cervix. It may be used as a method of induced abortion, a therapeutic procedure used after miscarriage, or a procedure to obtain a sample for endometrial biopsy. The rate of infection is lower than any other surgical abortion procedure at 0.5%.

Some sources may use the terms dilation and evacuation or "suction" dilation and curettage to refer to vacuum aspiration, although those terms are normally used to refer to distinct procedures.