Science & technology | Infertility

A neglected way to unblock Fallopian tubes needs revisiting

Fertility doctors may be missing a trick

Infertility: false-colour hysterosalpingogram of the abdomen of a woman suffering from blocked fallopian tubes. Hysterosalpingography is an X-ray technique that employs a contrast medium to outline the uterus and both fallopian tubes, coloured here in shades of blue. It is used in the diagnosis of infertility due to obstructed tubes, a possible consequence of pelvic inflammatory disease. In this patient, the right tube (left on image) is blocked near the uterus - the upper triangular feature. No contrast medium appears to have penetrated through the obstruction. The left tube is obstructed at a point further from the womb & dilatation (enlargement) has occurred.

In-vitro fertilisation (ivf) is marvellous. But it is also a palaver. It involves drugs, injections, early morning vaginal ultrasound monitoring, sedation, minor surgery, medical skill, high-tech machines and luck. And at several thousand dollars a pop, it is expensive. Not to mention that it is more likely than not to fail.

This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Unblocking the problem”

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