Evaluation of a balloon dilator before second-trimester abortion by vacuum curettage.

ABSTRACT

PIP: A volunteer study was conducted to evaluate the cervical dilator device (CDD) as a substitute for laminaria tents before induced abortion at 13-16 1/2 weeks by extraction and vacuum curettage. 58 2nd-trimester abortion patients were offered the CDD instead of laminaria. Amounts of dilatation resulting from the CDD were compared to results with laminaria; the results are presented in tabular form. The mean dilatation resulting from the CDD compared favorably with use of 1 medium laminaria tent. Parity had no consistent relation to dilatation. The CDD was found to be an effective dilator, but it had no advantage over laminaria tents placed overnight. The CDD caused significant pain on insertion and increased the risk of endometritis, as measured by fever and uterine tenderness. Further modification and refinement of the CDD are necessary to render insertion easier and less painful.