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Pregnancy testing prior to sterilisation
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Liverpool Women's Hospital, UK.
Objective:
To determine the incidence of positive pregnancy test on the day of laparoscopic sterilisation.
Design:
Prospective longitudinal observational study.
Setting:
Gynaecology unit in a UK teaching hospital.
Sample:
Between 1 January 1997 and 31 December 1998, eight hundred and two consecutive women were admitted for laparoscopic sterilisation after assessment in the gynaecology clinic. On the day of planned surgery, all women had a pregnancy test performed on a urine sample taken that morning following overnight fasting, immediately prior to operation.
Main Outcome Measures:
A positive pregnancy test on the day of planned surgery.
Results:
Of 802 women tested, 21 (2.6%) were pregnant. A careful medical history taken before surgery revealed evidence of amenorrhoea and menstrual irregularity in 17 of the pregnant women. Of the 21 pregnant women, 11 underwent termination of pregnancy, six continued the pregnancy, four had a miscarriage and one had an ectopic pregnancy.
Conclusion:
The routine practice of pregnancy testing on the day of laparoscopic sterilisation introduced in our hospital should continue to be part of a thorough clinical assessment before surgery. This may help to reduce the considerable level of existing litigation in a high risk area of gynaecological practice.