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Minor & bedside proceduresFree in the app

Dilatation & curettage (D&C)

Endometrial sampling — now largely replaced by hysteroscopy + biopsy.

Source: Standard operative texts

Steps

  1. Lithotomy; bimanual exam for size and position.
  2. Clean; Sims speculum; vulsellum on anterior lip.
  3. Sound the uterus.
  4. Dilate stepwise with Hegar dilators (to ~8–9).
  5. Curette all walls systematically until gritty.
  6. Polyp forceps if needed; send tissue for histology.
Perforation risk — gentle sounding and dilatation, especially if postmenopausal or retroverted.
A summary for trained clinicians. Always check the full guideline, the patient in front of you and your hospital's protocol. Spotted an error? Tell us.