IUD under general anaesthetic

[HalloweenPrincess]

People in the UK who had their IUD under GA in the hospital I have some questions for you!

After your GP refered you, did you have a consultation with the gynaecologist on a different day before the procedure?
What anaesthetic did you have? (Gas or injection)
How long were you at the hospital for?
Did they tell you not to eat or drink beforehand?

Any experiences please share with me! Thank you :)

I had a pre op the week before. Ga was through a cannula in the back of my hand. Couldn't eat from around 10pm the night before. Went home a few hours later and needed a few days off work to recover.

^^

That would be typical, though may vary from hospital to hospital. A few may see you on the day. You are likely also to have a separate "pre-assessment" appointment for a nurse or doctor to run through your medical history, examine you +/- organise blood tests etc. to prepare you for the day of surgery.

^^

The vast majority of adults in the UK will have a General Anaesthetic starting with an injection (but will breathe oxygen before going to sleep). This sort of procedure could be done with a spinal anaesthetic, but that tends to turn a quick 15-minute procedure it to a several hour long hospital (but can still be done as day surgery)

^^

Typically a morning or an afternoon, unless other procedures are done a the same time or there are any complications (eg pain, nausea or a surgical issue)

^^

Stay off food for 6 hours. Clear, see-through fluids can be drunk up to 2 hours before the procedure, including black tea / coffee (but check your hospital instructions, which you will receive)

Happy to answer any more questions. Good luck!

(Anaesthetist)

I hadn't realized it would be offered under GA. I had mine without and although uncomfortable it was fine. Good luck.

The reason for me asking these questions is that I have been told I have an appointment but nothing else about it at all! A very severe lack of communication and information really. I will have to phone them on Monday to find out whether the appointment is a consultation or the actual thing!

Anyone else?

I work in this field. This would be an appointment to discuss it with either the consultant or their registrar. Then if they feel appropriate; they would put you on a waiting list for a ga.

You would not be able to just skip straight to a ga procedure via your gp.

Yeah I’ve had confirmation that this is a consultation but they didn’t tell me originally so I was freaking out because I’ve not been to hospital since I was 12, so I had no idea.

I still would like to know peoples experiences with it and what type of GA people had.

I didn’t even know they went in under GA, I had mine shoved in by a random nurse in the family planning.

Am I thinking of something different? Im a bit confused 🙈

No, you’re not, most people have them done at their GP but in circumstances you can have it done under GA.

I had mine done as an emergency listing the next day after seeing the consultant, but at the time my cervix was totally stenosed closed due to a severe infection I got after an endometrial ablation, I had a building haematoma in my uterus that couldnt get out, God the pain! I had the cervix opened and the Mirena fitted under GA the next day, so slightly unusual case