Blocked Fallopian Tubes
About 20 percent of females coming to our Blossom IVF Centre are found to have problems in fallopian tubes. Few of reasons of blocked fallopian tubes are Pelvic infections (PID) leading to salpingitis and hydrosalpinx, Ectopic pregnancy, Tubal Ligation(family planning) surgery, Adhesions following abdominal surgery and Genital Tuberculosis.
Tubal factor infertility (TFI) is female infertility
Sometimes with help of our good intentions and help of latest technology , we can bring abundance joy in life of couples who have lost their children untimely because of illnesses or accidents.
Today, let me share a fruitful story of a patient with blocked fallopian tubes. A poor couple from Kolkata, who had lost 2nd son 7 years before at the age of 5 years due to severe infection in brain(meningitis) and the unfortunate wife had undergone family planning surgery at the time of delivery as they did not want a third child in future.
But after losing her beloved son ,she was under tremendous depression and she could not forget her lost young one. So she was brought to me for counselling and to discuss future treatment options to make their dreams of parenthood real again .
Getting Pregnant After Tubal Blockage
Here I offered them two options, discussing pros and cons of both treatments.
First option was to undergo family planning reversal surgery, though it is cheaper option than Test-tube baby treatment, It is painful as it is major surgery, success rates are less than 25%, chances of ectopic pregnancy(which if remains undiagnosed ,can prove life-threatening) and here as patient was already 35 ,her eggs reserve was also declining rapidly, much lowering the success of the procedure.
So as a second option ,they were offered IVF ,In which after few days of hormonal treatment to prepare her eggs, her eggs were removed from ovaries with a minor procedure, and fertilisation of her eggs and husband’s sperms were done in laboratory by IVF ICSI procedure.(In normal circumstances, this fertilisation occurs in fallopian tubes ,which was not possible in her case due to family planning surgery) and then embryos made by this procedure were transferred to patient’s uterus after 5 days and after 14 days her pregnancy test was positive and after 9 month ,she delivered a baby boy again. The couple was overwhelmed by having this bundle of joy again in their lives as according to them ,their lost son took re-birth again to make their lives meaningful.
Diagnosing Blocked Fallopian Tubes – Procedures to Open Blocked Fallopian Tubes – Infertility and Damaged Fallopian Tubes – Diagnose tubal factor disease – Infertility Treatments for Damaged Fallopian Tubes – Know Your Fallopian Tubes – Fallopian Tube Procedures for Infertility – Treatment options for Blocked Fallopian Tubes – Conceive with Fallopian tube Problem – Fallopian Tube Diagnostic Tests – Getting pregnant with blocked fallopian tube.
Tubal Disease is a disorder in which the fallopian tubes are blocked or damaged. One of the many causes of infertility is tubal disease, in which your fallopian tubes become blocked or damaged. About 15 percent of women who haven’t been able to get pregnant have damaged or blocked fallopian tubes. These are the tubes that connect your ovaries to your womb. Eggs are released from the ovaries and travel down the fallopian tubes towards the womb. If your tubes are damaged or blocked, eggs won’t be able to reach the womb. Blocked or damaged fallopian tubes restrict the egg and subsequent embryo from making it from the ovary into the uterus, thereby causing infertility.
While there are many causes of infertility, a blockage of the fallopian tubes is often the reason why many women are unable to conceive. It includes cases of completely blocked fallopian tubes and also cases with either 1 blocked tube or no blockage but tubal scarring or other damage. If the womb or the fallopian tubes are damaged, or stop working, it may be difficult to conceive naturally.
Fallopian Tubal factor infertility is often caused by
Endometriosis
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID)
Uterine Fibroids
Ectopic pregnancy
Tubal Ligation Removal
Complications from lower abdominal surgery such as Cesarean section
Genital Tuberculosis
Even if you ovulate regularly, having blocked tubes means your egg can’t get to your uterus, and your partner’s sperm can’t get to your egg.
Tubal Disease and Infertility
If the fallopian tubes have adhesions or scar tissue around them, it can block an egg and subsequent embryo from reaching the uterus, causing infertility. If the tubes are partially blocked by adhesions, sperm may meet the egg in the fallopian tube instead of in the uterus, and an ectopic pregnancy may occur.
As such there are no symptoms for blocked fallopian tubes. Depending on the cause painful periods, deep pain during sex and general pain in your pelvis may be noticed by the women.
Diagnosis of Tubal Disease
Medical history and a pelvic examination are necessary in diagnosing tubal disease. However, other tests are needed to confirm the diagnosis. The following test helps in ascertaining the damaged tubes.
Sonohysterogram – a procedure that uses ultrasound to detect masses in your uterus that may be blocking your fallopian tubes
Hysterosalpingogram – a procedure that uses x-rays and a special dye injected into your fallopian tubes, to see if they are open or blocked
Laparoscopy – an outpatient surgical procedure in which your doctor uses a narrow fiberoptic telescope inserted through an incision near your navel to look for and sometimes remove scar tissue or endometrial tissue blocking the fallopian tubes
Treatment options for tubal factor infertility
The treatment for tubal factor infertility is usually either tubal surgery to repair some of the damage or in vitro fertilization (IVF). There may be a number of options for treating your tubal disease. Laparoscopic surgical removal of the scar tissue may be appropriate for some cases. However, in many cases, if the fallopian tubes are severely damaged, it is often safer and more successful to bypass the fallopian tubes and use in vitro fertilization (IVF) to achieve pregnancy.
Women with a prior fallopian tubal ligation (cut or tied tubes for sterilization) have the option of either IVF or a tubal anastomosis (TA, reconnecting the fallopian tubes). This technique reconnects the blocked ends of the fallopian tubes and involves a major surgical procedure and a 4-6 week recovery time. The success rate depends on the type of ligation and how much fallopian tube is present to reconnect. For example, if there are less than 5 centimeters (roughly 2 inches) of fallopian tube, then the success rates are extremely low.
There are many different ways to perform a tubal ligation, including burning, tying, clips, and removal of part of the fallopian tube. In cases where burning, tying or removal was used, there is often not enough tube for reconnection and IVF is the only option. The operative notes from a previous tubal ligation can be important to determine if tubal anastomosis is an option. Success rates are often low and women run the risk of an ectopic pregnancy after this type of fallopian tube surgery. Due to these factors, most couples choose IVF. For those few women with clips on their fallopian tubes, surgery becomes a more viable option. The amount of fallopian tube that remains after surgery is critical to the function of the tube. If a large part of the tube must be removed to eliminate blockage, the likelihood of pregnancy after surgery is reduced. The success of a sterilization reversal is influenced by the tubal ligation method used, by how recently the tubal ligation was done, and by the woman’s age-related fertility.
Other conditions that affect the success of surgery include not only whether the woman has scar tissue (adhesions) in her pelvis and whether she has other diseases in the pelvic area but also the surgeon’s level of skill and experience. The decision to have one of these therapies for tubal infertility should be based on several factors which your reproductive endocrinologist (fertility specialist) should discuss with you. The most significant issues are success rates, the degree of tubal damage, the age of the female, and whether other infertility factors (male or female) are present.
Blossom Fertility and IVF Centre in Surat offers a one-stop diagnostic and IVF treatment service for infertile couples. The team of fertility specialist is always ready to help patients deal with any kind of infertility issues be it due to male or female infertility, blocked fallopian tubes, endometriosis, repeated miscarriages, unexplained infertility, PCOS or any other issue. Infertility doctors at Blossom have a reputation for success, both in quality of care and in pregnancy and live birth rates. We at Blossom are committed to offer to the patients clinical excellence, cost-effective treatment options, personalized compassionate care, and exceptional success rate. We provide assistance and guidance in determining causes, diagnosis, and treatment about Tubal Disease. If you’re ovulating normally, our team of fertility specialist may also consider assisted reproduction techniques that by pass the fallopian tubes entirely. These can include intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), artificial insemination directly into the uterus (IUI) and in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Consult infertility expert at Blossom Fertility centre in Surat for complete medical advice for IVF infertility issues related to Fallopian Tube – Causes, Treatments and everything you need to know for conceiving & pregnancy at http://www.blossomivfindia.com
