The value of endometrial histology in suggesting the presence of ectopic gestation

The practicality of endometrial histology for suggesting the possibility of ectopic gestation was evaluated by a review of two years' experience at the Naval Regional Medical Center, Portsmouth, Virginia. Using various histologic criteria, we could not predict the presence of ectopic pregnancy. The false-positive rate when we used standard histologic criteria was 97%. The effort on the part of the pathology department to exclude intrauterine pregnancy by through examination of endometrial material was a fruitless exercise and also unnecessarily raised medical costs.