Abortion
Day 24 after abortion: do you need a follow-up examination?
Day 24 · Recovery after abortion
One of the questions that comes up on day twenty-four is this: so many days have passed, shouldn't I have gone for a check-up? If no appointment appears on your calendar, you may think something is missing.
At our clinic, a check-up is not a fixed appointment given to everyone, but a door that stays open for patients who want or need one. Below you will find when and how to knock on that door.
Short answer
Do you need a follow-up examination after an abortion?
At SoftCare Clinic there is no routine check-up day after an abortion. A detailed ultrasound check is done after the procedure, and most patients need no further check-up. Patients who want a check-up or need one are invited free of charge; the check-up is included in the procedure fee. A video consultation can be arranged for patients who cannot come; if a test is needed, it is arranged through a partner laboratory.
When to call?
If you have one of these signs, you do not wait to ask for a check-up; you call the clinic.
A box showing, with icons, the warning signs that mean contacting the doctor.Should everyone go for a check-up after an abortion?
No; there is no routine check-up day at our clinic. A detailed ultrasound check is done after the procedure; the doctor also checks during the procedure, with ultrasound and by hand, that it is complete. That is why most patients do not need a separate follow-up examination.
Do I pay if I want a check-up?
You do not. The check-up is included in the procedure fee; patients who want a check-up or whom the doctor considers to need one are invited free of charge. If you have a doubt, you are not expected to justify it; it is enough to call the clinic and say you want a check-up.
At the examination, if the doctor considers it necessary, an ultrasound is done and tests are checked. What is examined is decided according to your situation.
When should I ask for a check-up?
- When there is bleeding that soaks 2–3 pads an hour, a temperature of 38 °C or above, severe pain that does not ease with painkillers, foul-smelling discharge or a clot the size of a golf ball; in these situations, call the clinic straight away.
- When you notice dizziness, shivering, a hard abdomen or burning on urination.
- If a home pregnancy test is still positive after 3 weeks, or its line is getting darker.
- If 45 days have passed since the procedure and your period still has not come.
How is a check-up done if I cannot come to the clinic?
If you are in another city or country, a video consultation with the doctor can be arranged. If it becomes clear during the consultation that a test is needed, this is arranged through the clinic's partner laboratory; the medical team will explain how to proceed.
Do today
- If you want a check-up, call the clinic and say so.
- Note the course of your bleeding and, if any, the date of the home test.
- If you cannot come, ask for a video consultation.
- Write down your questions before the consultation.
Don't do today
- Do not think you have missed something because you have no appointment.
- Do not avoid asking for a check-up because of worries about cost.
- Do not wait for a day to ask for a check-up when you have a warning sign.
- Do not draw conclusions on your own from a positive home test.
Special note
If you feel well
If you have no complaints and no check-up appears on your calendar, you have not missed anything; at our clinic most patients do not need a further check-up. Still, if you are not at ease, you can ask for a check-up; you do not pay extra for it.
Special note
If you did a pregnancy test at home
A home test is misleading in the first 15 days and can stay positive for up to 4–6 weeks. If on day 24, that is, after three weeks have passed, you see a result that is still positive or a line getting darker, call the clinic.
When should you call?
Call 112 first (if you are abroad, that country's emergency number)
- Fainting: If you faint, call 112 first; if you are abroad, call the emergency number of the country you are in.
Call the clinic straight away
- Heavy bleeding: Soaking 2–3 pads within one hour. A total of 2–3 pads over the whole day is normal.
- Fever: A temperature of 38 °C or higher, or fever together with weakness.
- Severe pain: Severe abdominal or back pain that does not ease with painkillers.
- Foul-smelling discharge: Unusual, foul-smelling vaginal discharge.
- Large clot: Passing a clot the size of a golf ball.
Call the clinic
- Even if you have no symptoms, if you are not at ease, call the clinic and ask for a check-up.
- If your doctor has called you for a check-up and you cannot come, let them know so a video consultation can be arranged.
- Dizziness or shivering: Dizziness, chills and shivering that do not pass.
- Hard abdomen: The abdomen becoming hard, or clear tenderness when touched.
- Burning on urination: Burning or stinging when passing urine.
SoftCare Clinic patients can reach the doctor's assistant or a nurse 24 hours a day; when needed, they contact the doctor. Call whenever you are unsure; what your own doctor tells you always comes first.
Frequently asked questions
Is it essential to go for a check-up after an abortion?
At SoftCare Clinic there is no routine check-up day after an abortion. Because a detailed ultrasound check is done right after the procedure, most patients need no further check-up. Patients who want a check-up or whom the doctor considers to need one are invited to the clinic free of charge; the check-up is included in the procedure fee.
Is an ultrasound done at the check-up after an abortion?
At the follow-up examination, if the doctor considers it necessary, an ultrasound is done and tests are checked; which examination is done is decided according to the patient's situation. At SoftCare Clinic a detailed ultrasound check is also done right after the procedure; that the procedure is complete is also checked during it, with ultrasound and by hand.
What should I do if a pregnancy test is positive 24 days after an abortion?
A home pregnancy test is misleading in the first 15 days after an abortion and can stay positive for up to 4–6 weeks, because the pregnancy hormone does not drop straight away. Under SoftCare Clinic's rule, if the test is still positive after 3 weeks, or the line is getting darker, call the clinic. Day 24 is beyond this limit; report the result to the clinic.
Sources
SoftCare Clinic for your questions
Our patients can reach a nurse and the doctor's assistant 24 hours a day.
This page is for general information; it does not replace an examination or your doctor's advice. Every woman recovers differently. The times and rules your doctor gives you always take priority over those on this page.
Medically reviewed by Op. Dr. Şükrü Sanus, Obstetrician & Gynecologist · Last medical review: