FAQs
When is the heart formed?
The heart starts forming at 4-5 weeks gestation (4-5 weeks after the first day of the last period). Electrical activity and heart cell pulsations from this area can be seen on ultrasound starting at 6 weeks. This is called embryonic or fetal cardiac activity. The chambers of the heart are not fully formed until 17 weeks, so a true heartbeat does not occur until after 17 weeks.
When can you tell sex?
Generally, 12-14 weeks by ultrasound. Lab testing may be able to determine the sex of the fetus earlier in pregnancy.
When does the fetus start moving?
Movement begins and can be seen on ultrasound by 10-12 weeks. Most people begin feeling the movement around weeks 16-24.
When can the fetus/baby feel pain?
Sometime in the third trimester, after 24 weeks, pain perception is possible.
Does the pregnancy come out whole?
For suction abortions, no – after 8 weeks tissue is usually in fragments. Before 8 weeks, pregnancies from suction abortions may come out whole.
What do clinic staff do with pregnancy tissue?
In Minnesota it is disposed of by cremation and/or burial, per state law.
Can patients keep the tissue?
For in clinic suction abortions, no – due to Minnesota state law. Patients can touch, hold, or take a picture of their tissue. Clinic staff can provide a keepsake such as hand/foot prints.
I am an abortion provider. How can I offer tissue viewing?
Your patients know what’s best for them and consenting to tissue viewing is no exception. Offering to view, touch, hold, or take a picture of their pregnancy tissue can be meaningful to patients who are looking for closure or who are just curious and want more information. Informing patients on what pregnancy tissue looks like can help them in making the decision to view or not, and can prepare them for what to expect. Please feel free to share this website with your patients! Abortion Care Network and the National Abortion Federation have further resources for providing tissue viewing at your practice.
How can I find more information about abortions?
For general abortion information and how to access abortion care, view the National Abortion Federation website.
do you have pictures of your medication abortion that you’d like to share?
Glossary
A reproductive organ in which the pregnancy grows.
Gestational sac, pregnancy sac, or amniotic sac are membranes filled with fluid, like a bubble. The pregnancy grows inside of the sac.
Chorionic villi is tissue that connects the sac to the inside of the uterus, it can look light and fluffy.
The inner lining of the uterus. Thick, opaque and reddish pink in color – this tissue thickens during pregnancy and is also shed when someone has their period.
How far along the pregnancy is. In pregnancy dating, the first day of the last normal period is considered to be the first day of the pregnancy. Conception typically happens about two weeks after that first day.
Refers to a pregnancy under 10 weeks gestational age.
Refers to a pregnancy 10 weeks or more gestational age.
An organ that temporarily forms during pregnancy to help the fetus grow, it connects to the fetus through the umbilical cord to provide nutrients and remove waste.