How it Works

After taking the medication, you should experience bleeding with cramping and possible passage of clots or tissue between 4 and 24 hours after use. Depending on how far along your pregnancy progressed, you may experience heavier bleeding or more obvious passage of tissue.

You may have heavy bleeding, but if your bleeding soaks a large pad per hour for more than 2 hours or causes dizziness/lightheadedness, please call our office.

Sometimes the medication may be repeated after 12 to 24 hours if no bleeding occurs. If no bleeding occurs after completion of the medication, please call our office, as you may require a procedure to complete your miscarriage.

You will have significant cramping during the miscarriage. You may use an anti-inflammatory medication such as ibuprofen for pain. You may also be prescribed a narcotic pain medication for more intense pain, not relieved with ibuprofen. Please use these as directed.

If you have pregnancy symptoms such as nausea or fatigue, these will go away within a few days to 2 weeks after treatment. Your bleeding should decrease quickly over the days following your miscarriage. Period-like bleeding should stop after 1 week, but some women continue to have spotting until their period resumes.

Do not drive while taking prescription pain medication or if your level of discomfort could inhibit your ability to operate a motor vehicle safely.

Avoid intercourse until your bleeding has stopped completely.

You should schedule a follow-up with our office as directed by your physician following the miscarriage. You can accomplish this with an ultrasound or repeating your pregnancy hormone (HCG) labs until they are normal.

In most cases, it is safe to try again to conceive after 1 normal period. Please use protection until that time.

Once we have verified that the miscarriage is complete, it is safe to start a contraceptive to prevent pregnancy if that is your desire. Please see us to make a contraceptive plan.

It is normal to feel sad, guilty, or angry after a pregnancy loss. The support of family and friends can be helpful if you feel able to discuss your feelings with them. Advent Health Shawnee Mission offers a Perinatal Bereavement Group you may contact if you need emotional support during the process. You can reach them at 913-632-4223.

Most women who have a miscarriage go on to have healthy pregnancies.

• A fever higher than 100.4 degrees F
• Increasing pain not controlled by pain medication
• A foul-smelling discharge
• Inability to eat or drink without vomiting
• Heavy bleeding soaking a pad per hour

If you feel you need to be seen emergently, please go to the Emergency Department at Advent Health Shawnee Mission or Olathe Medical Center so that our physicians may care for you.

You should direct any questions regarding your recovery from your medical miscarriage to the staff at the Women’s Clinic of Johnson County rather than your Primary Care Physician.

Complications from a D&C are very rare. In general, your Women’s Clinic of Johnson County provider will inform you of all of the risks and benefits involved with D&C before you schedule your appointment.

Every insurance carrier and individual plan can vary on coverage for D&C in Kansas City. Some patients may have full coverage for such a procedure; others may only have partial coverage. Unfortunately, finances can be a factor for some in determining when to receive a D&C procedure. We recommend calling your insurance provider using the phone number on the back of your insurance card for more information. If you have questions about how the procedure will be billed, please don’t hesitate to contact our office.

D&C is considered a surgery. We recommend resting for up to 1 to 3 days after surgery. However, for certain cases or patients, we may advise taking off of work for up to 1 week depending on your condition, medical history, and job requirements.

Women may have cramping post-procedure that should be resolved with OTC pain medications.

• You may experience cramping similar to menstrual cramps for 48 hours after the procedure.
• You may take “over the counter” pain relievers that do not contain aspirin, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol®) or ibuprofen (Motrin® or Advil®). Do not exceed the daily recommended dose.
• Your doctor may have prescribed a narcotic pain medication to use as well.

Note: If the pain is not relieved by pain medication, becomes worse, or you have difficulty breathing, call our office.

• You may resume the diet you had prior to surgery.
• Drink 6 to 8 glasses of water daily.

• For the first couple of days following surgery, you may experience discomfort with urination due to catheterization of your bladder during the procedure.
• If you have persistent urinary urgency, dysuria, or inability to empty your bladder, please call our office.

• You may return to your normal activity one day after surgery. Most patients are able to return to work one day after surgery.
• Do not drive while taking prescription pain medication or if your level of discomfort could inhibit your ability to operate a motor vehicle safely.
• You may shower the day after surgery. Do not soak in a bathtub for one week after surgery.

• Vaginal bleeding like a period, spotting, brown discharge, or watery discharge is expected for up to two weeks after surgery.

Note: If you have heavy, bright red vaginal bleeding soaking one pad or more per hour, call our office

Call your WCJC Officer if you are experiencing…

• A fever higher than 100.4º F
• Increasing pain not controlled by pain medication
• Inability to eat or drink without vomiting
• Shortness of breath
• Inability to empty your bladder
• Redness and tenderness at the incision site or a large amount of drainage
• Heavy, bright red vaginal bleeding, or foul smelling discharge. You can expect to have a small amount of reddish-brown colored discharge for up to six weeks. Do not be alarmed by this.

If you feel you need to be seen urgently, please go to the Emergency Department where your surgery was performed so that our physicians may care for you.

Any questions regarding your surgery or post-operative recovery should be directed to the staff at the Women’s Clinic of Johnson County rather than your Primary Care Physician.