Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 7, 2026

Fertility Sparing Procedure using Carbon Dioxide Fiber Laser Vaporization of Ovarian Endometrioma
Published on: July 6, 2022
Manual vacuum aspiration for second-trimester pregnancy termination
C S Todd1, M E Soler, L Castleman
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Objectives:
To compare manual and electric vacuum aspiration for surgical abortions between 14 and 18 weeks of pregnancy.
Methods:
A consecutive case series of pregnant women presenting to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center for abortion. There were 73 women in the manual vacuum aspiration group and 37 women in the electric vacuum aspiration group. Dilatation and evacuation was performed using manual or electric vacuum aspiration according to protocol. Procedure time was assessed with the t-test.
Results:
In all cases, abortion was performed with initial vacuum. Group sizes were sufficient to detect a 20% difference in mean procedure time with 80% power (calculated with two separate S.D.s for procedure time). There was no significant difference in procedure time between the two groups.
Conclusions:
Manual vacuum aspiration can be safely and effectively used in second-trimester abortion procedures and should be more widely investigated for this purpose.
Related Concept Videos
Endoscopic Studies II: Thoracocentesis
Description
Excess pleural fluid or air may accumulate in some respiratory disorders in the thoracic cavity. To treat pleural effusion, a physician conducts thoracentesis by carefully piercing the chest wall and entering...
Suctioning the Nasopharyngeal Airway
Equipment Required
Tracheostomy Suctioning II: Procedure

