Ultrasound examination of the fallopian tubes

The basic diagnostics in case of unfulfilled desire to have children includes the examination of the sperm quality (spermiogram), a hormone analysis in the woman and the examination of the tubal permeability.

There are two options for examining the fallopian tubes. The usual standard test to clarify the nature of the fallopian tubes is laparoscopy. Here under anesthesia with a camera through the navel in the stomach looked while blue color is injected into the uterus. Through the camera can be seen whether the blue color exits through the fallopian tubes. The advantage of this approach is that it is 100% reliable. In addition, other physical factors that play a role in the desire to have children can be assessed very well. On a repair of glued fallopian tubes is nowadays mostly dispensed with. Too often, this operation is unsuccessful or re-adhesions develop.

However, some women wish to avoid surgery under anesthesia. The fallopian tubes can alternatively be examined with the help of an ultrasound examination in our practice. In this case, a sugar-containing contrast agent is injected into the uterus with the aid of a fine catheter and, at the same time as the ultrasound, it is checked whether the contrast medium exits through both fallopian tubes. This can be seen in the ultrasound. The sugar solution also allows for easier bonding in the fallopian tubes, thereby improving the patency of the fallopian tubes. This procedure takes only a few minutes and is very painless.
In some cases, slight abdominal cramps may occur, comparable to period pain. In general, however, you can return to your normal everyday life. Ideally, this procedure is performed on the last days of menstruation when only minimal bleeding is present. This ensures that no pregnancy is disturbed and the cervix is ​​still open. This facilitates the insertion of the catheter.