laporoscopy and endemetriosis

[Madigan]

Hi all -
I have to go for a laporoscopy on Oct 18th, because have been ttc 19 months now without success, and doctor concerned I may have endemetriosis. Would be v grateful for any advice/ and to hear from anyone who has gone throught this... feeling slightly apprehensive!
Thank you!

[Moomin]

Hi Madigan - sorry to hear you're having a few probs ttc.

I went through the same thing after I'd been ttc for 17m. The lay&dye was ok in itself. I had a general (my first ever) and was quite woozy when I woke up for a while and very thirsty but ok after a bit. My consultant found a bit of endo which was causing my bowel to be stuck to the back of my womb (nice!) but nothing in his opinion that would cause infertility.

Ask your consultant what s/he proposes to do if they do fins endo that would be causing problems. Many surgeons like to zap it there and then, so you need to be aware this is what they might do if they find something 'suspect'. And make sure you've either woken up properly or your dh/dp or a nurse is with you when the consultant comes to see you after the op so you can take everything in properly.

Do you have a suspected history of endo? or is this an elimination thing in the ongoing investigations for not conceiving?

The scar is very small. It did take me a while to recover fully but that's cos I had an infection and the wound went a bit funny but I was unlucky - most people feel fine after just a couple of days of soreness.
All the best x
ps. do ask more if you want to. Plus there are lots of threads on endo as well.

[Moomin]

lay&dye?!!!
lap&dye!!

[zippitippitoes]

If it's still done the same way they blow up your stomach with gas so that they can see easily, the gas takes a while to disperse afterwards and if it gets in your armpit can be a bit uncomfortable..

Are you having a d&c at the same time?

[MeerkatsUnite]

Hi Madigan,

A lap is the standard operation done to see if endo is present. It is a keyhole surgery op (therefore scarring is virtually non existant) done under general anaesthesia. Was wondering why this has been suggested - have you had a history of painful and or heavy periods for instance?.

You ought to be followed up asap post surgery as well. You need to find out asap when exactly you will be followed up post surgery.

The first thing you need to do when you have recovered from the operation is to ask your surgeon exactly what was found and what was done.

Some questions for you to ask include:-
Were your ovaries and fallopian tubes healthy?
Did you have any adhesions?
Was your bowel or bladder involved?
What stage is the endo?
What further treatment is recommended?

The worst part I found about the lap was the pain caused by the carbon dioxide post op (this lasted for about a day). Would say that painkillers took the edge off it. Had two days off work post op also.

D & C is becoming increasingly unpopular and is often dismissed as diangostically inaccurate and therapeutically ineffective. Would not think they will do this in your case.

[Madigan]

Thank you all for advice
Not having d&c as far as I am aware. Endo is suspected because I do have painful periods, and also because other tests show DH sperm is fine, and I am ovulating fine, so maybe that would explain difficulties in ttc.
Have a very nice consultant,who will perform the lap - so will ask her all the suggested questions asap.
Thank you all v much for advice.

[jayzmummy]

I had endometriosis and know how painful it can be....good luck with your lap and ttc.

[chloe55]

I had endometriosis and a lap a few years ago. The worst pain, imo, was the gas that travelled up round my neck and arms, I thought I'd been dropped mid GA as nobody explained that I would feel this pain! I had to have quite a lot of lesions burnt away (luckily my fallopian tubes were reasonably healthy) my bowels were also adhesed. I'd like to point out that I am now 19 weeks pregnant

[zippitippitoes]

the other after effect that i had which you couldask about

was that the fallopian tube twisted as a result of the laporoscopy

and when i ovulated the egg stoped where the kink was and I had the most excruciating pain ever

it lasted several hours but eventually cleared (called the gp out in the middle of the night it was so bad
)

I don't know how common that is

apparently the egg itself eventually untwisted the tube?

[hunkermunker]

Have had three laps (one diagnostic, two treatment) - I had endometriosis very, very badly (stage 4, with enormous convoluted adhesions).

Also have PCOS, DS was conceived on Clomid because I wasn't ovulating. Then a year later, I got pg naturally immediately.

Really got to go and get lunch ready, but just wanted to reassure you that it's a relatively straightforward, if quite intricate, operation - and it does have good results. Feel free to CAT me (contact a talker, link at top of page) xxx

[Madigan]

Can't tell you how good it is to hear from you all - and for so much goos advice
the gas thing sounds awful - consultant did not mention that, will definitely raise it with her
My consultant also suggested that it is fairly common to get pregnant fairly swiftly after a lap, but not sure what the reason for that is ... trying not to get my hopes up too much ... but does anyone know anything about this ?

[Madigan]

err, good advice (rather than goos advice ...)!

[Littlemermaid]

Sorry to hear about your problems. I was diagnosed after about 7 years and had the same operation. I too found the pain in my arm/shoulder and a bit of bleeding to be the worst of it - you should be fine. I felt much better and my endo was severe like hunkermunker's. I had my op in August 2003 and conceived in January 2004 and had a successful pregnancy. My doc suggested there is some anecdotal evidence to suggest that endo either vastly improves or dissapears either totally or for long periods after giving birth - sadly I haven't found this to be the case, but as I say many do ! Good luck !

[zippitippitoes]

I was prescribed something called Danone (or is that yogurt?)and evening primrose oil by the gynaecologist, I was diagnosed with endometriosis but never reallyn understood what it was very well but i already had children...

The gas after effects are about the same as toothache I would say (and only last a day or three)

[jamboure]

madigan

Dh and I tried for 4 years to have a baby and it wasnt happening for us

I too had numerous laparoscopy's(6 in total) but all came back showing nothing. Dh had sperm count checked to on a few occasions.

Our consultant decided to refer us to ivf clinic as this was our last hope. Around 3 weeks after being reffered to ivf clinic we recieved a letter confirming they had recieved refferal, 2 days later we were pregnant.

We were dumbstruck, no longer needed the ivf andI believe after we "gave up" mother nature came up trumphs.

I am now proud mummy to 3 boys 1 @ 3.9 and twins of 20 months.

Good luck and i do hope you have a succesful story like i did

[ChaCha]

Firstly, LOL @ Moomin's 'Lay & Dye'..chuckle, chuckle!

Hiya Madigan,

I have had 2 laps. One performed a couple of years ago privately as I had been diagnosed withe endometriosis. My obstetrician zapped the endo at the same time and also discovered i had a tilted womb - that too was rectified. Found the gas escaping through shoulders thing a tad painful but doesn't last long. Trying not to laugh (stitches) was the hardest.
Anyway..was sent home, put on the pill and given some medication which unfortunately caused an ovarian cyst! Could not afford private healthcare again and waiting for appt on NHS, had the cyst removed via lap on November 30th, 2004. Discovered I was 5 weeks pregnant on March 30th, 2005!!!!!!
Am currently just over 30 weeks pregnant. Never thought it would happen TBH. Best of luck to you Madigan, never give up hope (it happened when i wasn't even trying) and good luck with your lap. Feel free to CAT me too or ask as many questions as you like.

All the best xxx

[Madigan]

Again, thank you all for your advice - I feel so much more confident now. At least it sounds as though I have a decent chance of getting pregnant after the op, although of course it does depend what they find ....
not sure about gas escaping through the shoulder ... sounds extremely odd!!! But am sure I will cope!

[hunkermunker]

Madigan, afaik the gas thing is where they inflate you and tilt you slightly so as to examine you and get at any endometriosis that might be lurking (evil stuff - it can get everywhere!).

My consultant told me that it's only if they get any oxygen in the line they use to put the gas in (think it's CO2 they use? Might have got that totally wrong!) that it causes the pain. I only had it once out of the three surgeries I had so you will by no means get it. Peppermint tea is meant to help ease it.

ZTT - was it Danazol you were prescribed?

[supernurse77]

i have been trying for a baby for two and a half years...i have a twelve year old daugter from a previous relationship and thought it was my husband that was infertile, but my gp says i have to go for a lap as i have symptoms of endemetriosis. i am desperate for a baby and its really encouraging hearing of all your sucess stories. i really hope they can sort me out and does anyone no what the sucess rate is ? i need to wait three months for my hosp appt but if its sucessfull it will be worth it i would not care how sore it is as i am so desperate for a child with my husband to complete our family. good luck to all of you who are in a similar position as i no the heartache it can cause.
leeanne

[MKG]

My sil has endometriosis and had a laproscopy 4 years ago. The doctor said it could take a while for her to conceive and she was pregnant within 8 months and has a healthy two year old. She finished some hormone treatments (monthly testerone injections) to stop her periods and help the endometriosis in November. The doctor told her she could possibly be infertile, or her periods may never come back. Well she found out on Sunday that she is pregnant again, and I think she is still getting over the shock.

Just wanted to let you know that there are wonderful success stories out there.

[pollyblue]

I've had a couple of laps and also had my left ovary and tube removed due to cysts and endo damage. My endo was graded at the time a grade 4, pretty severe, but i have gone on to have a dd, conceived naturally, 2 years after ovary was removed. I was also in my late 30s at the time so all in all was not hopeful! But there you go............just wanted to say very best of luck to you and let you know there is hope