The pro-life group Live Action just released a video where former abortionist Kathi Aultman describes a second-trimester D&E abortion.
She says:
I’m a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist with almost 33 years of experience, and I’ve completed over 500 abortions.
Today I’m going to describe a second-trimester surgical abortion called dilation and evacuation or D&E. A D&E is generally performed between 14 and 22 weeks of pregnancy.
Before a D&E abortion can be done, the cervix must be dilated slowly over one to two days with laminaria or a similar product. laminaria is a type of seaweed that absorbs water and swells to several times its original diameter.
When the woman undergoes the evacuation portion of the procedure. She lies on a table with her legs in stirrups. She may be given injections of local anesthetic in the cervix, IV conscious sedation, or general anesthesia.
The abortionist uses a speculum to open the vagina and uses an instrument to stabilize the cervix. Metal dilators may be used to further open the cervix if needed.
Once the cervix has been stretched open a cannula attached to suction tubing is placed inside the uterus. The suction machine is then turned on and the amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus is suctioned out. The fetus is too large to fit through the cannula, so he or she must be removed in pieces with a clamp such as this sopher clamp.
A sopher clamp is made of stainless steel and is about 13 inches long. At the tip there are rows of teeth for grasping.
The abortionist reaches into the uterus with the clamp and tries to grasp an arm or leg. Once the abortionist has a firm grip, she pulls forcefully in order to remove the limb. Piece by piece, the abortionist removes the arms and legs followed by the head or the body, including the torso and pelvis. Along with the intestines, the heart and the lungs.
The placenta is also removed. If the cervix has been over-dilated, the body or even the entire fetus may be pulled out intact.
Usually, the most difficult part of the procedure is extracting the fetus’s head, which at 20 weeks is about the size of a large plum. The abortionist must open the clamp widely to grasp the head and then crush it so that it will fit through the cervix.
The abortionist knows she has crushed the skull when a white substance, the fetus’s brains, leaks out through the cervix. The abortionist then removes the compressed head.
Any remaining limbs, organs, bone fragments, or pieces of placenta not removed with the forceps are removed by scraping the uterine lining with a large curette or by reinserting the suction cannula.
The abortionist then reassembles the fetal parts to make sure that there is nothing left inside the uterus which could cause infection or bleeding. Once all the parts have been accounted for, the bleeding has been controlled, and all the instruments have been removed from the vagina, the abortion is considered complete.
For the woman, this procedure carries the risk of major complications, including perforation or laceration of the uterus or cervix, with possible damage to the bowel, bladder, or other maternal organs. Infection and hemorrhage can also occur which can lead to death. Future pregnancies are also at an increased risk for loss or premature delivery due to abortion-related physical trauma and injury to the cervix.
As I mentioned at the beginning, I used to perform abortions. At the time I truly believed I was helping women. After the birth of my daughter, however, I realized that abortion doesn’t just undo a pregnancy, it kills an innocent human being.
Such terms as zygote, embryo, or fetus are simply terms that refer to age, like infant, toddler, and adult, and do nothing to diminish the humanity of the child.
As I cared for women in my OB-GYN practice, I also learned how abortion harms women. I stopped doing abortions because I could no longer kill babies just because they were unwanted. I am now a pro-life advocate.
I am proof that anyone can change no matter who they are, or what they’ve done. I invite you to join me and make a decision to protect the preborn.
