Category Archives: Round 2

Saltwater Taffy: The Saline Ultrasound

07 Wednesday May 2014

Posted by in Infertility, IVF, Procedures, Round 2, Tests

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So yesterday it began. What I like to call the “prep” phase. Like I said before, I was feeling a little anxiety about hopping on this ride again.  My last experience with this procedure was pretty painful.  Not as painful as the uterine biopsy– (That was more painful than birth), but painful all the same. However, the saline ultrasound, or sonohysterography as it is sometimes called, is an important step in determining infertility issues.  Here is a little background…*disclaimer:  The following is by no means intended to be medical advice and is solely intended to reflect my own experience and understanding.  You own experience may be different due to the advice and policies of your medical team*

The saline ultrasound generally takes about 3-10 minutes once it gets going.  You, of course, assume the position on the chair with the stirrups.  A speculum is inserted, which is the same instrument used in a PAP smear.  A catheter is then inserted into the cervical opening into the uterus, and a small amount of sterile saline (saltwater) solution injected into the uterus.  This will outline and highlight all the amazing stuff going on in there.  From there, an wand ultrasound is inserted and the doctor will examine all such amazing stuff, photograph it via the ultrasound machine, and give you the “what haps” on what he sees.  Here is a little diagram….

The purpose of the saline ultrasound is to determine if there are any polyps, fibroids, scarring or endometrium issues within the uterus.  It detects issues that generally cannot be seen with a traditional ultrasound.  Here are two examples  of the types of images produced by a saline ultrasound. The photo to the right shows the uterus before being blown up by the saline, and after the saline is injected (The black mass in the center).  This is what the results will look like for a normal, healthy saline ultrasound.  The photo to the right shows abnormal results with arrow A pointing to a large polyp, B is the Saline, and C is the wall of the uterus.

uter-hysterosono-norm[1]               uter-hysterosono-polyp[1]

You can see how a polyp might impede implantation!

So many people ask, “Is it painful?” This is a challenging question for me to answer. I remember the first one I had a few years ago being pretty painful…like a 7 out of 10. This was mostly due to the speculum, cramping and catheter insertion. Speculums have always been pinchy for me, but others have now problem with speculums. My procedure yesterday can only be described as moderately uncomfortable and was over in like 2 minutes. Yay!!! I think the experience is different for everyone, but it is an invaluable tool in helping to pinpoint your fertility issue.

So the good news is:  My ultrasound came back amazing!  My doc’s word were, “Everything looks perfect!”  Well hot dang…..

Gambler’s Anonymous

01 Thursday May 2014

Posted by in FET, Infertility, Our Story, Round 2

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So for those of you who need a recap, our 4 year journey with infertility ended last July with the birth of our amazing son.  I always tell people that he is a product of hope, love, faith, and science.  In October of 2012, we did one last IVF cycle.  I must admit, I was done.  After 1 failed 3 failed IUIs, 1 failed Fresh IVF, and 1 chemical miscarriage after an FET– I really was just going through the motions.  Our clinic, NCCRM (which I love), offered a significant discount up front if you payed for multiple cycles.  We chose to prepay for two.  Although going into the last IVF I put on a hopeful smile, a hidden inner me had begun to accept that children were just not in the cards for my husband and I.  That IVF cycle went perfectly- 12 eggs retrieved…10 fertilized…and 8 made it to grade A 5 day blasts.  I attribute this significant improvement to acupuncture and diet, but I will go into that more another day.  Two were transferred and 6 were frozen.  And after years of waiting…we finally had a successful pregnancy.  Now my son is approaching a year old.  It has been a whirlwind! We have loved every minute of it.  Finally coming up for air, we recognize that those 6 embryos are still there..waiting….Dare we roll the dice again with an FET?  Absolutely!

Next week we will slowly start to delve into the process.  Slowly.  I am going in for a saline ultrasound to check for polyps and such.  Booooo.  I must admit, walking into the clinic to have our first consultation was like walking into a past war zone for me.  Can I really do this again?  All the nurses smiled, called hellos, and cooed to the baby.  The Dr.  talked about how promising our chances were and laid out the potential schedule.  All I could see ahead was blood draws, probes, 2 week wait anxiety, and potential heart ache.  But then I looked at my son playing with fistfuls of brochures and thought, “It was worth every painful moment and then some!  Lets go for it!”.  So here we are…brave faced ready for probing 😉

I will try to blog more often during this experience as a lot of readers have reached out wanting a better understanding of the process.  Maybe we will be double blessed and our family will grow.  If not,  I am forever grateful and joyous to have this adventure of life with my husband and son!!!!