Diagnostic methods that are currently available to gynecologists are less traumatic and more informative than the classics. They allow to detect diseases at a very early stage and minimize the amount of surgical intervention.
Curettage VS hysteroscopy
Ask your mother about the scraping procedure: she will probably have a couple of stories about friends or acquaintances who were subjected to such an execution at one time.
With the help of a curette blindly (no one bothered about the targeted sampling of the material), a certain amount of mucous was scraped out of the uterine cavity, which was then sent for cytological examination. The procedure could be done even without anesthesia (as lucky). The accuracy of diagnosis in this case was very doubtful, and the trauma of the uterine cavity was very extensive. And scraping often exacerbated existing problems. For example, in the case of synechiae in the uterine cavity, there were no guarantees that they had been removed, but they definitely created a wound surface, where inflammation and adhesions form in the future. The chances of getting pregnant and bearing a child in this case fell sharply. Today, there is an excellent alternative to curettage – hysteroscopy, which allows not only to diagnose problems associated with women’s health, but also to solve them literally on the spot. Hysteroscopy is prescribed for suspected tumors (benign and malignant), with the appearance of bleeding during menopause, with menstrual irregularities, with infertility (it happens that synechia or adhesions in the area of the fallopian tubes are not noticeable on ultrasound). There are two types of hysteroscopy: office and operating room.
Office hysteroscopy
It is carried out to assess the state of the uterine cavity: a small piece of mucous membrane is taken for histology immediately upon examination in a chair. Also, within the framework of office hysteroscopy, it is possible to assess the scale of the problem and decide whether we can deal with it now or whether it is necessary to prescribe a course of additional examinations and refer the woman for surgical hysteroscopy. Office hysteroscopy is not available in all clinics. For its implementation, you need special equipment – an office hysteroscope. It is smaller than the standard size and does not require dilatation of the cervical canal. All this makes the procedure quite comfortable and painless.
Operating hysteroscopy
As part of this procedure, it is possible not only to diagnose, but also to solve those problems of women’s health that require surgical intervention. Operational hysteroscopy is performed under intravenous anesthesia, the image of the inner surface of the uterus is displayed on the screen. The doctor has the opportunity not only to examine the uterine cavity in detail, but also using a special tool resectoscope, remove the myomatous node, polyp, intrauterine septum, and accurately take a fragment of the mucosa for a biopsy.
