An operation in which the UTERUS is opened to remove a FETUS before 28 weeks’ gestation. After 28 weeks it would be called a CAESAREAN SECTION. It is now seldom used as a means of abortion.
n. an operation for removal of the fetus by incision of the uterus through the abdomen before the 24th week of gestation; after this time the operation is called *Caesarean section. Hysterotomy is now rarely performed owing to improvements in the efficiency of drugs now available for inducing abortion, e.g. *mifepristone.
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