Miscarriage removal, usually a Dilation and Curettage (D&C), involves pain management like sedation or general anesthesia, so you feel little to no pain during the procedure itself, but you will likely experience cramping and discomfort similar to strong period pains afterward, managed with pain relief. The goal is to minimize pain and emotional distress compared to passing the miscarriage naturally, though some discomfort is normal during recovery.
Pain and cramps
You will probably have some cramps (like strong period pains) in your lower stomach on the day of the operation and milder cramps for a day or so afterwards. You'll be given some painkillers before you leave hospital but you can also use over-the-counter painkillers if you run out.
The physical recovery can take 1 or 2 months. Your period should start within 4 to 6 weeks. Don't put anything in your body, including a tampon, and don't have sex for about 1-2 weeks. It can take longer for you to heal emotionally, especially if you knew you were pregnant when you miscarried.
Dilation and curettage (D&C) is a procedure to remove tissue from inside your uterus. Health care professionals perform dilation and curettage to diagnose and treat certain uterine conditions — such as heavy bleeding — or to clear the uterine lining after a miscarriage or abortion.
After a miscarriage, avoid excessive physical activity as it can affect health, especially since the abdominal muscles haven't fully contracted. After a miscarriage, women should avoid sexual intercourse for a certain period of time.
Whether they occur early (between the 14th and 22nd week of pregnancy) or late (from the 22nd week of amenorrhea), they raise a lot of concerns. Among them: the fear of infertility. However, did you know that it is precisely after a miscarriage that your chances of conceiving are the best? Yes, it's surprising!
Most of the tissue passes within 2 to 4 hours after the cramping and bleeding start. Cramping usually stops within a day. Light bleeding or spotting can go on for 4 to 6 weeks. Two weeks after the tissue passes, your ob-gyn may do an ultrasound exam or other tests to make sure all the tissue has passed.
The pregnancy is removed using instruments and gentle suction. You will not feel pain during this procedure but may feel some discomfort if you have your treatment with conscious sedation. The treatment takes about 10-20 minutes.
This treatment involves a surgical procedure known as a dilatation and curettage (D&C) which is done under a general anaesthetic. The procedure will remove any pregnancy tissue from your uterus. It is successful in 95 to 100 per cent of cases but there are small surgical risks.
Take an over-the-counter pain medicine, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), or naproxen (Aleve) for cramps.
Going through miscarriage can be heartbreaking and even traumatic. You may feel a complicated mix of emotions including sadness, shock, grief, depression, guilt, anger or resentment. For those who were pregnant, the changes in hormone levels can also cause mood changes and difficult emotions.
Even though you lost your child during pregnancy or soon after, you are still a parent. Take care of yourself.
If you miscarry naturally, even in the early weeks of pregnancy, you are likely to have period-like cramps that can be extremely painful. This is because the uterus is tightly squeezing to push its contents out, like it does in labour – and some women do experience contractions not unlike labour.
Not all miscarriages are physically painful, but most people have cramping. The cramps are really strong for some people, and light for others (like a period or less). It's also common to have vaginal bleeding and to pass large blood clots up to the size of a lemon.
If the miscarriage occurs before 10 weeks of pregnancy, it'll most likely happen on its own (natural miscarriage). After the 10th week of pregnancy, there's a higher risk of having an incomplete miscarriage. In that case, you may need a D&C procedure to make sure your uterus is completely empty.
Several studies examining patients' experience of pain during first-trimester surgical abortion under local anesthesia report mean pain scores between 4 and 7 on a scale of 0–10 [16,19– 21].
The procedure is usually done under general anesthesia in an operating room, and takes only 5-10 minutes once you are asleep. The risk of serious complications is low. Most women are discharged a few hours after the procedure and most women return to normal activities within a few days.
Some people describe these as strong period pains, other people who have given birth to a baby previously say they feel more like contractions in labour. You may have milder cramps or aches for a day or so afterwards. Paracetamol or ibuprofen should help with these.
However, if there's still some pregnancy tissue in your womb, your options are:
One respondent said: “Pain was so much stronger than period pain, it was like having contractions in labour. I've given birth three times and the pain really wasn't too much different from that pain, the cramping contraction pain.”
Though the idea of surgery might sound scary, a D&C is generally gentle, routine, and leads to a fast recovery.
- Urinary Urgency, Bladder Spasms, Bladder Pressure are part of the healing process. If you experience burning with urination in addition to these symptoms, please contact our office. - Expect some moderate vaginal bleeding every day for the next couple of weeks.
Women can safely miscarry on their own with few problems in pregnancies that end before 10 weeks. After 10 weeks, the miscarriage is more likely to be incomplete, requiring a D&C procedure.
Treatment with medicine
For an incomplete miscarriage, the medicine will usually encourage the pregnancy tissue to pass within a few hours. At most it will happen within a day or two. For a missed miscarriage, it may happen quickly, but it can take up to two weeks and, occasionally, longer.
You may pass tissue as well. With an early miscarriage, the tissue may look like a blood clot mixed with grey-white material. Or it may look like a clear, fluid-filled sac. An ultrasound exam or blood test for hCG may be done after the miscarriage to confirm that all the tissue has passed.