A summary of reported pregnancies after hysteroscopic sterilization

The purpose of this article is to describe 64 unintended pregnancies reported by patients who had undergone hysteroscopic sterilization and to provide recommendations for avoiding post-procedure pregnancies. Sixty-four pregnancies out of an estimated 50 000 procedures were reported to the device manufacturer from 1997 through December 2005. Most occurred in patients without appropriate follow-up. Other causes included misread hysterosalpingograms, undetected preprocedure pregnancies, and failure to follow product-labeling guidelines. The risk of pregnancy with hysteroscopic sterilization may be reduced by educating patients about the necessity of follow-up, ensuring that patients use effective contraception before and after placement, following the instructions for use, and adhering to the hysterosalpingography protocol.