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AIBU?

Hysteroscopy with just local anaethetic

82 replies

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:21

Has anyone had this done?

OP posts:

Report

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:26

The reason I ask is because my bloods are not right for a GA, so I phoned my aunt in Ireland and her good friend is a ward manager on a gynae ward in Ireland and she has said that she has never seen it done with local anaesthetic, yet posters on another thread have said they've had it done that way in the UK.
Apparently bloods need to be good for a spinal too.

I'm calling the sister back in the hospital tomorrow, and I need to know what to ask about.

Thanks

OP posts:

MrsDrudge · 09/05/2019 19:33

Ask what is meant by “your bloods not being good enough” for a general anaesthetic. Do you need treatment for this?
And if this is resolved and your bloods ok, could you have a GA if you chose?

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:35

Yes and yes. However it will take time (weeks I suspect).

OP posts:

jgjgjgjgjg · 09/05/2019 19:37

If you got run over by a bus I'm quite sure they wouldn't refuse to do emergency surgery because your 'bloods weren't good'. You need to be an awful lot more proactive in asking questions until you understand exactly what you are being told and what the risks and benefits are.

FudgeBrownie2019 · 09/05/2019 19:37

Yes, I had one done in January with just a local anaesthetic. It pinched and I felt it afterwards but a couple of co-codamol sorted it out. It was nowhere near as painful as I'd been imagining it might be.

PottyPotterer · 09/05/2019 19:38

I'm having one in a couple of weeks, no mention of a GA, been told will be 10-30 mins outpatient appointment so guess that's normal here (Scotland).

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:39

I was never offered a spinal in the Uk, just a local anaesthetic or a general. It's the ward manager in Ireland who said that if your bloods are not good enough for a general, they're probably not good enough for a spinal (not that that was offered to me).

OP posts:

DementedSlug · 09/05/2019 19:39

Is that where they flush out your tubes? They didn't give me anything for that!

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:40

Ireland must be different then. If she's a ward manager on a gynae ward saying she's never seen a hysteroscopy done with just a local, I'm sure she's not lying. It must not be done that way in Ireland.

OP posts:

Satina · 09/05/2019 19:41

We do the majority of the hysteroscopies at our hospital without general anaesthetic and most patients tolerate it fine.
If you want them to stop at any time, just say so - it's your body.
If you don't tolerate it, you may need to re-evaluate the risks/benefits of a hysteroscopy under general anaesthetic with your doctor.

Myusernameismud · 09/05/2019 19:41

I had a hysteroscopy with no anaesthetic whatsoever. It was to look for a missing coil which turned out to be rotated and wedged in my cervix. I had it removed there and then without anaesthetic. Its uncomfortable, but not unbearable.

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:42

No, it's not flushing out your tubes. It's a procedure where they fill your womb with fluid then insert a camera through your cervix to have a look inside.

OP posts:

Watsername · 09/05/2019 19:44

Yes, I had one. I can't remember if I had anaesthetic. Maybe local, possibly none. It was absolutely fine. No problems at all.

TheoriginalLEM · 09/05/2019 19:44

I had one and i didn't even have a local. It was for a coil replacement and a quick look see. It hurt but was not unbearable.

MumW · 09/05/2019 19:44

When I had my hysteroscopy, I wasn't given any options and just told to take painkillers an hour before. It was fine. Admittedly I took a dose of all the painkillers I could - paracetamol, codeine & ibuprofen but even so I was really surprised how easy it was.
Is there a specific reason that you need anaesthesia?

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:44

I wonder why it's always with either a spinal or general in Ireland and so different here. I'm not opposed to pain, just that if it gets too painful they'll have to stop which is a waste of time.
They seem to do a lot of things with you awake over here that you'd at least be sedated for in Ireland (e.g. colposcopy, the one where they stick a camera down into your tummy). You'd never be awake for those in Ireland.

OP posts:

legolimb · 09/05/2019 19:46

I had a hysterosalpingogram without anaesthetic many years ago. Is it a similar thing ?

It wasn't my favourite experience ever but not terribly painful.

LillyLeaf · 09/05/2019 19:46

I had one without a general just a local anaesthetic, I remember it being fine, just a bit uncomfortable which was mostly due to the speculum.

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:46

It bloody terrifies me that they're so happy to leave you in pain over here

OP posts:

Greyhound22 · 09/05/2019 19:50

I had one yesterday with nothing at all. It's not the most pleasant thing I've ever had done I'll grant you but bearable.

For the first 5 minutes or so it was fine really and then I went very crampy and said it was getting too painful and he stopped. I've had mild period type pain since. Advice would be to take your own massive pads for after as it was like I was constantly weeing for about an hour and the hospital crap ones were no good. I've just about stopped bleeding now.

Mine was just an investigation to look at my fibroids but I wouldn't have a GA for that unless absolutely necessary. It was fine and I'm not the bravest.

Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 19:51

This is the message I received from my aunt (a midwife). Lucy is the ward manager on the gynae ward.

^Lucy has not seen it done using local anaesthetic.
She suggested that you would eat bananas as they are a good source of potassium..... if you have access to them this evening it would be good to eat some bananas.
She also suggested your GP might put you on Slow- K which is a potassium supplement.
She did not answer my question about the spinal.... I have asked her in another text about it as a possibility. I do know you need good blood results for a spinal too. I will text you should Lucy send anymore information.^

OP posts:

Greyhound22 · 09/05/2019 20:03

I can't imagine for a minute they would do a spinal for an exploratory hysteroscopy. They are so dangerous and it's a relatively mild procedure.

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Agednotwine · 09/05/2019 20:03

@Greyhound22

I'm sorry but saying he had to stop mid-procedure and it was 'fine' doesn't compute in my brain!

OP posts:

PookieDo · 09/05/2019 20:07

Why would you want a GA anyway - they are really not very nice. Longer recovery time and more dangerous

I would go for one with local or nothing and have had things done like that with nothing before, I think I have a good pain threshold though but they would probably advise you to take painkillers too

Purpleartichoke · 09/05/2019 20:07

Yes and it was no big deal. Awkward and uncomfortable, but not much different than a Pap smear. General wasn’t even an option. It wasn’t quite an in-office procedure, but it wasn’t in the surgical area of the hospital either. Basically just a room
With a changing area and the necessary equipment.

Spent the rest of the day feeling crampy and wanting to hang out on the sofa.

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