Reversing a Tubal Ligation

by Pattie Hughes | More from this Blogger

Over 600,000 women in America undergo surgery for tubal ligation. This surgery is done to permanently prevent future pregnancies. Within a few years, about six percent of these women will decide they want to get pregnant again. Some will attempt to have the procedure reversed to fulfill their desire to carry another child.

One factor that will influence the success of the reversal procedure is the original surgical procedure. The type of procedure used in the tubal ligation will impact the success of reversing it. Your doctor will need information about the tubal ligation before agreeing to attempt a reversal. You may need to request the records from the doctor who performed the surgery.

A factor that will determine your success is the length of the fallopian tubes. Normal tubes are about eight inches long. You'll need about half this length after the reversal for the procedure to be successful and allow for pregnancy.

In addition, the ends of each tube should be the same in diameter for them to be successfully rejoined. These two sections of tube will need to be joined using microsurgical techniques. If the diameter of each varies too much, the likelihood that the surgery will work and you will become pregnant greatly diminish.

The age of the woman at the time of the tubal ligation can have an effect on the success rate of the reversal. Similarly, the age of the woman at the time of the reversal will have an effect. The younger the woman, the greater the chances of success. The shorter the time span between surgical procedures, the better in terms of the outcome. If it has been many, many years since the original surgery, the success rate will be lower.

The success rate varies greatly from woman to woman. In general, the rate is between twenty and seventy percent. This is a very wide margin. The factors mentioned in this article contribute to the success rate for the individual woman. For example, a woman who had the surgery not long ago, who will have at least three to four inches of tube after the procedure and if the tubes are identical in diameter will have a greater chance of achieving pregnancy.

Related Articles:

Vasectomy Reversal

The Effect of Stress on Fertility

When a Friend Gets Pregnant

Learn more about Pattie Hughes

Pattie Hughes is a freelance writer and mother of four young children. She and her husband have been married since 1992. Pattie holds a degree in Elementary Education from Florida Atlantic University.

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