On the 31st of October I went into emergency surgery to remove my left Fallopian tube and pregnancy. I had been having extreme pains as the tube had already burst sometime whilst I kept working and trying to ignore the pain.
Since I now live in Beijing, China I have found it extra difficult dealing with this so I guess I'm just looking for more information - my Chinese is good, but not THAT good to really understand all the medical terms and such, all I really have is the internet, and most English sites are blocked with the whole government censorship thing. So glad I could get on here though.
I'm really worried about my ability to have children in the future. This ectopic was my first ever pregnancy and I'm about to turn 24. It was a surprise pregnancy but very much wanted with my partner. It's been so hard coming to grips with it all (I hadn't ever even heard of an ectopic before this happened to me) and since they removed the tube I know my chances would be lower. My surgeon informed me I have chronic PID and that everything inside my stomach is stuck together? He told me I couldn't take any medicines to help it now that it's progressed this much. He said my right tube is still ok but if I don't take care of it the same thing will happen next time. He recommended IVF for future pregnancies and that I should wait at least 1 year before trying again, and use contraception until basically menopause to prevent another ectopic. He also said I had way too much potassium in that area and so he gave me one injection to help that. Since then no medicines. I left the hospital after 1 week, bed rest for another week and now in week 3 I have gotten back to work. I own a kindergarten so there's a lot of work pressure which I can't take so much leave from, but I'm feeling more and more exhausted and dizzy each day and today I've had intense stabbing pains and cramps in the same area of my stomach. I feel so stressed and unsure of what's going on. It's coming up to the end of 4 weeks since my surgery. Any recommendations on what I should be doing? I know this has been a really long post, Thank you to anyone reading this
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3 weeks after ectopic surgery pains
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EPT Host 12
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Re: 3 weeks after ectopic surgery pains
Dear Shannonf
I am so sorry to hear of your ectopic pregnancy and loss. It can be all the more difficult to come to terms with what has happened in the absence of information and I will do my best to help with your questions. While I cannot comment in detail on healthcare practices in China, I can provide some general information which may assist with some of your questions.
- Chances of conception in the future
It is usually possible to conceive after having an ectopic pregnancy even if a fallopian tube has been removed. While you are right that our fertility has been impacted having had an ectopic pregnancy, having had a fallopian tube removed does not mean it has halved. When you only have one fallopian tube you can still get pregnant from the opposite ovary as the egg can travel down the tube on the other side. It is estimated that an egg produced on the tubeless side manages to descend the remaining tube around 15 to 20% of the time. This means than rather than your fertility being halved it has only been impacted by around 30% or another way of looking at it is that you still have a 70% chance of conception with each menstrual cycle. What I can say is that studies show that around 65 per cent of women are healthily pregnant within 18 months and this rises to around 85 per cent within two years after an ectopic.I hope that this can offer some comfort.
- PID
While I cannot comment in detail on personal cases/diagnoses, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease is a common condition (PID) and is an infection of the female upper genital tract, including the womb, fallopian tubes and ovaries. If diagnosed at an early stage, PID can be treated with a course of antibiotics, which usually lasts for 14 days. I am not sure from your message as to whether your doctors have prescribed any medication for you and it may be something you can speak to them about.
You have also mentioned that your doctors have said "everything inside my stomach is stuck together". I am not exactly sure what they are alluding to but your doctors could be talking about abdominal adhesions. This is very common after abdominal surgery and is scar tissue which forms as a part of your healing. Abdominal adhesions are a common complication of surgery, occurring in up to 93% of people who undergo abdominal or pelvic surgery and even in 10.4% of people who have never had surgery. Most adhesions are painless and do not cause complications, but they can contribute to the development of chronic pelvic pain or even restrict the motion of the small intestines. Adhesions typically begin to form within the first few days after surgery, but they may not produce symptoms for months or even years. Often they produce no symptoms at all. In some cases they produce no symptoms until someone is pregnant again and then they are felt as the body changes during the early stages of pregnancy so the woman, naturally, worries they are pains from another ectopic pregnancy. Having abdominal adhesions does not necessarily mean that this will impact your ability to conceive and only time will tell. Speaking personally, I had major abdominal surgery as a child and my doctors informed me that I had extensive adhesions and I wanted to share with you that I have been fortunate to conceive successfully after my ectopic pregnancy with my one remaining fallopian tube. I hope this can provide some comfort.
- Health of remaining fallopian tube and chance of future ectopic pregnancy
It is encouraging that your doctors have said that your remaining fallopian tube looks healthy. I have to confess that I am a little confused by your doctor's statement that if you "don't take care of it the same thing will happen next time". Sadly there is nothing that can be done to prevent an ectopic pregnancy from occurring again. Any sexually active woman of childbearing age is at risk of an ectopic pregnancy and there is nothing you can "do" to guarantee it will never happen again. Using contraception until menopause is not something that I have ever heard doctors in the UK suggest and there is always the risk that contraception can fail. In addition, with certain types of contraception (like the coil or progesterone only pill), the risk of an ectopic pregnancy can be higher. We have more information on contraception on our website (see section entitled Contraception under Your body after an ectopic pregnancy).
The chance of a subsequent ectopic pregnancy after a first is around 10 per cent. It's a generalised statistic and individual risk profile varies depending on personal circumstances so it could be higher or lower for certain women. Looking at this another way there can be around 90% chance of a pregnancy being in the right place. I hope that this can provide some comfort.
You mention that your doctors said you "had way too much potassium in that area and so he gave me one injection to help that" - I am not sure of the circumstances around this and it would be helpful if you could provide a bit more information on why the potassium was administered as this is not usual in the UK.
- Trying to conceive again
I am not sure of the processes in China but doctors here in the UK recommend trying to conceive naturally for a period of time before suggesting assisted reproduction techniques like IVF. As mentioned above, there is a good chance that you may be able to conceive naturally with one fallopian tube. We and other medical professionals advise you wait for at least three months or two full menstrual cycles (periods) before trying to conceive for both physical and emotional reasons. Again, from an English healthcare perspective, we suggest women who are under the age of 35 and have been trying unsuccessfully for a year should speak to their doctors. They can suggest further fertility tests for you and your partner, or can refer you to a fertility specialist.
- Ongoing pain
We often hear from women who continued pain in the days and weeks after treatment for ectopic pregnancy and this could be due to many things. It may be adhesions or scar tissue that forms as your body heals. It could be heightened awareness or ovulation or period pain as the body adjusts post-treatment. I hope you don't mind my asking but I just wanted to check whether your doctors have checked for infection as it would be a good idea to rule this out. You mention that you were prescribed no medication on leaving hospital and am I right in thinking that you were administered antibiotics during your stay?
After surgery, it is important to take it easy in the first few weeks as your body heals internally. In general, after six weeks you should be able to return to most jobs from a physical point of view and it may be the case that returning to week has been physically and mentally exhausting. I appreciate that you feel the wish to return to work but is there any way that you can return on a part-time basis? Alternatively, are there any tasks that you can carry out from home?
I hope that this has helped with some of your questions. You are welcome to message again if need be or email us at ept@ectopic.org.uk.
Sending you lots of good wishes
Munira
*****************************************************************************************
If we have been able to help you, are you able to help us with a small donation or by volunteering?
Further information is available at ectopic.org.uk
Email us: ept@ectopic.org.uk
We provide a call-back helpline service: 020 7733 2653
The latest EPT newsletter is out now! You can take a look at the Autumn edition and subscribe to our mailing list here: http://us2.campaign-archive2.com/?u=869 ... c934280f65
Detailed medical information can be found on our website. Please remember online medical information is NO SUBSTITUTE for expert medical advice from your own health care team
I am so sorry to hear of your ectopic pregnancy and loss. It can be all the more difficult to come to terms with what has happened in the absence of information and I will do my best to help with your questions. While I cannot comment in detail on healthcare practices in China, I can provide some general information which may assist with some of your questions.
- Chances of conception in the future
It is usually possible to conceive after having an ectopic pregnancy even if a fallopian tube has been removed. While you are right that our fertility has been impacted having had an ectopic pregnancy, having had a fallopian tube removed does not mean it has halved. When you only have one fallopian tube you can still get pregnant from the opposite ovary as the egg can travel down the tube on the other side. It is estimated that an egg produced on the tubeless side manages to descend the remaining tube around 15 to 20% of the time. This means than rather than your fertility being halved it has only been impacted by around 30% or another way of looking at it is that you still have a 70% chance of conception with each menstrual cycle. What I can say is that studies show that around 65 per cent of women are healthily pregnant within 18 months and this rises to around 85 per cent within two years after an ectopic.I hope that this can offer some comfort.
- PID
While I cannot comment in detail on personal cases/diagnoses, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease is a common condition (PID) and is an infection of the female upper genital tract, including the womb, fallopian tubes and ovaries. If diagnosed at an early stage, PID can be treated with a course of antibiotics, which usually lasts for 14 days. I am not sure from your message as to whether your doctors have prescribed any medication for you and it may be something you can speak to them about.
You have also mentioned that your doctors have said "everything inside my stomach is stuck together". I am not exactly sure what they are alluding to but your doctors could be talking about abdominal adhesions. This is very common after abdominal surgery and is scar tissue which forms as a part of your healing. Abdominal adhesions are a common complication of surgery, occurring in up to 93% of people who undergo abdominal or pelvic surgery and even in 10.4% of people who have never had surgery. Most adhesions are painless and do not cause complications, but they can contribute to the development of chronic pelvic pain or even restrict the motion of the small intestines. Adhesions typically begin to form within the first few days after surgery, but they may not produce symptoms for months or even years. Often they produce no symptoms at all. In some cases they produce no symptoms until someone is pregnant again and then they are felt as the body changes during the early stages of pregnancy so the woman, naturally, worries they are pains from another ectopic pregnancy. Having abdominal adhesions does not necessarily mean that this will impact your ability to conceive and only time will tell. Speaking personally, I had major abdominal surgery as a child and my doctors informed me that I had extensive adhesions and I wanted to share with you that I have been fortunate to conceive successfully after my ectopic pregnancy with my one remaining fallopian tube. I hope this can provide some comfort.
- Health of remaining fallopian tube and chance of future ectopic pregnancy
It is encouraging that your doctors have said that your remaining fallopian tube looks healthy. I have to confess that I am a little confused by your doctor's statement that if you "don't take care of it the same thing will happen next time". Sadly there is nothing that can be done to prevent an ectopic pregnancy from occurring again. Any sexually active woman of childbearing age is at risk of an ectopic pregnancy and there is nothing you can "do" to guarantee it will never happen again. Using contraception until menopause is not something that I have ever heard doctors in the UK suggest and there is always the risk that contraception can fail. In addition, with certain types of contraception (like the coil or progesterone only pill), the risk of an ectopic pregnancy can be higher. We have more information on contraception on our website (see section entitled Contraception under Your body after an ectopic pregnancy).
The chance of a subsequent ectopic pregnancy after a first is around 10 per cent. It's a generalised statistic and individual risk profile varies depending on personal circumstances so it could be higher or lower for certain women. Looking at this another way there can be around 90% chance of a pregnancy being in the right place. I hope that this can provide some comfort.
You mention that your doctors said you "had way too much potassium in that area and so he gave me one injection to help that" - I am not sure of the circumstances around this and it would be helpful if you could provide a bit more information on why the potassium was administered as this is not usual in the UK.
- Trying to conceive again
I am not sure of the processes in China but doctors here in the UK recommend trying to conceive naturally for a period of time before suggesting assisted reproduction techniques like IVF. As mentioned above, there is a good chance that you may be able to conceive naturally with one fallopian tube. We and other medical professionals advise you wait for at least three months or two full menstrual cycles (periods) before trying to conceive for both physical and emotional reasons. Again, from an English healthcare perspective, we suggest women who are under the age of 35 and have been trying unsuccessfully for a year should speak to their doctors. They can suggest further fertility tests for you and your partner, or can refer you to a fertility specialist.
- Ongoing pain
We often hear from women who continued pain in the days and weeks after treatment for ectopic pregnancy and this could be due to many things. It may be adhesions or scar tissue that forms as your body heals. It could be heightened awareness or ovulation or period pain as the body adjusts post-treatment. I hope you don't mind my asking but I just wanted to check whether your doctors have checked for infection as it would be a good idea to rule this out. You mention that you were prescribed no medication on leaving hospital and am I right in thinking that you were administered antibiotics during your stay?
After surgery, it is important to take it easy in the first few weeks as your body heals internally. In general, after six weeks you should be able to return to most jobs from a physical point of view and it may be the case that returning to week has been physically and mentally exhausting. I appreciate that you feel the wish to return to work but is there any way that you can return on a part-time basis? Alternatively, are there any tasks that you can carry out from home?
I hope that this has helped with some of your questions. You are welcome to message again if need be or email us at ept@ectopic.org.uk.
Sending you lots of good wishes
Munira
*****************************************************************************************
If we have been able to help you, are you able to help us with a small donation or by volunteering?
Further information is available at ectopic.org.uk
Email us: ept@ectopic.org.uk
We provide a call-back helpline service: 020 7733 2653
The latest EPT newsletter is out now! You can take a look at the Autumn edition and subscribe to our mailing list here: http://us2.campaign-archive2.com/?u=869 ... c934280f65
Detailed medical information can be found on our website. Please remember online medical information is NO SUBSTITUTE for expert medical advice from your own health care team
