birth after cone biopsy/LLETZ

[blueberry69]

I have had 2 cone biopsies (10 years ago)and consequently have a very short cervix and a fair bit of scar tissue.

I had a cervical stitch put in preventatively at 15 weeks to prevent an early delivery as there was a good chance my cervix would be weak.

However at nearly 30 weeks it has stayed strong and my consultant is now suggesting i need to have an elective cs as he thinks there is a high chance my cervix won't dilate properly due to all the scar tissue that I have. We had various fertility treatment along the way (IUI and IVF) and they always had major trouble finding the entrance to my cervix and inserting a catheter due to my now narrow/distorted cervical opening so this supports his concern but i was always keen to have a natural delivery if possible.

I wonder if anyone else has had a normal birth after cone biopsies - ideally i would like a natural birth but don't want to end up, as the consultant fears, in labour for ages only to end up with an emergency cs because i cant' dilate.

There is some info on this here-
www.gentlebirth.org/archives/staldlbr.html#Stenotic
It seems some women do have a problem dilating, others don't.
Not much help I'm afraid.
Selina

i had treatment on my cervix and ended up with a full on crash section ,however this wasnt related to my cervix which diltaed as it should . What i would say is having a crash section is a truly terrifying ordeal ,full general etc ,while all the people i know who had planned cs it was a totally different and calm positive experience .My previous two children were born 'naturally' and tbh and i will whisper this ,all in all giving birth via your fanjo is a totally over rated experience imho

You've posted in yout thread title about experiences after LLETZ, which I have had, and cone biopsies which I haven't. I have a feeling that experiences of childbirth post these different procedures may be two completely separate kettles of fish.

Therefore I can only tell you what happened after my (x3) LLETZ. I do seem to dilate slowly, but I do dilate, and have experienced 3 normal VBs. There is a website aimed at LLETZ/cone biopsy/CIN3 women, but I am afraid I can't for the life of me remember what it is called, sorry.

I did, they checked me a little bit more but there was no drama at all. good luck

The birth was normal ( if birth can be classified as normal)

Now on second PG and its a non issue

I echo littlesilver about there being quite a difference. I have had lletz and am not being treated any differently because of it. Noone expects any complications (27 weeks gone)

Hi, I've had LLETZ many years ago and was told it wouldn't cause a problem but unfortunately for me, it did. I dilated very quickly but due to scar tissue, a 'lip' of cervix remained which made it impossible for me to push past. The consultant believed she could pull DS past with a ventouse, which she did however it resulted in my cervix tearing, a PPH and several hours of emergency surgery to repair the damage.

Now TTC no 2 and have been advised to have a transabdominal suture at 11 weeks with CS delivery as its a bit of a state 'up there'.

None of this may happen to you of course, but out of the statistics there has to be some unlucky ones!

Hi there, I had a punch biopsy (still makes my eyes water to think of it!) followed by loop diathermie to remove CIN 3 cells. Apparently I have a fair amount of scar tissue although no stitch needed during my PG's and I dilated the first time in 3 hours 50 minutes!!

I was worried and asked for an extra scan to check the length and condition of my cervix, which I was told was fine. It's worth ringing up the sonographer at the hospital and asking nicely for them to fit you in to put your mind at rest (this is what I did - no guarantees they'll cut out the GP/middle man but worth a try!)

Good luck.

Thank you so much everyone. It seems there is no certainty and only time will tell if i will dilate or not!

Earplugs - your story does make me think i should consider the elective cs. I wish you luck in ttc and in a successful pregnancy - a transabdominal suture will surely do the trick.

Bumpsoon - I love your honesty re fanjo birth!

blueberry, your post has really made me think. I am still very angry about the way I was treated with DD3's birth (pushed to have synto as I was dilating so slowly). I know I have a lot of scar tissue (remember nurse looking a bit shocked at last smear!). Maybe I should have pointed that out to mws.

I had Lletz in December 2008 and am due next week. it will be my first labour since the procedure.
I had never thought about it until I read this post.

I wrote it in my medical history but noone has mentioned it to me.

Hoping it wont be a problem.

I had Lletz in December 2008 and am due next week. it will be my first labour since the procedure.
I had never thought about it until I read this post.

I wrote it in my medical history but noone has mentioned it to me.

Hoping it wont be a problem.

Hormonalmum - I don't think you should worry unnecessarily and very much hope I haven't done that. The reason it has been flagged for me is that both my cone biopsies were substantial and I had a total cervical length of 2.6cm chopped off! This is what has left such a scarred area and why the consultant is concerned. He did say that in most cases it is fine but in my particular case it may be an issue due to the extent of my surgery. I hope all goes well for you next week - how exciting!

hormonal - Good luck when the big day comes! I'm sure the Lletz won't affect you at all. I'd be surprised if it's even discussed. Although I'd be grateful if you would please come back and let me know if it is, because I think I am in the same situation as you, but only 27+ weeks gone. Thanks.

Blueberry - thanks for coming back. I do not know how much cervix I had removed but think I would know if it had been substantial. I hope all goes well for you. I am glad that they are keeping an eye on you.
Good luck to you

Curly - thank you also. I will report back for sure!
Good luck to you

Just reporting back!
I had contractions for a week prior to having dd2 - a hour or so every day and I asked the mw if she thought it was anything to do with my Lletz procedure. She said no, it was just third labours are unpredictable!

When labour started for certain - I was 1 hour 30 mins from start to finish so it did not effect my dilation.

Hope this helps put your mind at ease - good luck

Congratulations HormonalMum. Glad to hear all went well - 1 1/2 hours is amazing.

Good to hear back! Congratulations!

Congrats hormonal! Hope you are well - very positive story

I had a loop excision biopsy in 2002, for my first pregnancy I had my cervix measured and it was shorter than normal, I had it checked at 27 weeks and it was soft so they gave me steroids for the babies lungs. I gave birth at 39 weeks the birth took 2 hours and 5 minutes majority of that was pushing. I went to hospital after a bad bout of the trots, and was 5cms dilated when I arrived, I had a bath, and felt like I needed to push the midwife came in looked and told me to push, I went from 5cm's to pushing in 10 minutes tops.

Not sure if that helps or not, sorry if it doesn't.