Before a Tubal Reversal Get the Answers to these 6 Questions
Posted by: Sandra Wilson in Family, tags: FamilyIf you have had your tubes tied and want another baby now for whatever change in circumstances precipitated the desire, you are left looking at a tubal reversal or at in vitro fertilization. But before you make up your mind which one to go for, there are usually a few questions you want to ask. Some of those questions are answered below.
1 - Usually a big one is why has my doctor never heard of tubal reversal? Why does he push in vitro fertilization? The answer to the second question is partially the answer to the first. He pushes IVF because he does not know about tubal reversals especially if he was educated and trained in the last 15 years or so. You just don’t find this surgery being done in hospitals so doctors can’t be trained in it. If they aren’t trained, then many think that means it’s not possible. Tubal reversals used to be the new and upcoming technique. Then IVF became the new and upcoming fertility technique and reversals fell out of favor. Why? Just look at the price tag difference and you’ll know the answer to that.
2 - What are the statistics for tubal reversal and IVF? You will average three cycles of IVF though I have read on one woman who had 75. She must have been rich. Why? Because in the U.S., each cycle costs around $11,000. That’s an average and for each cycle. Maybe she lived elsewhere. Remember to factor in what the treatments do to your body and the risk factors. With tubal reversal, the average is about $8500 though you can find it cheaper as well as much more expensive. Same for IVF. The leading tubal reversal doctor in the U.S., maybe the world, charges $6900. That is all he does. Success for each cycle of IVF is ten to thirty percent. The range has to do with the number of eggs implanted. For tubal reversal, using the leading doctor’s published statistics, the average success rate is 69% but yours could be higher depending on your age.
3 - How does my age affect things? Well, the older you are the less likely you will get pregnant. After 40, it starts really going downhill but that doesn’t mean it’s a total wipe out. Using that leading doctor’s published statistics, even a woman over 40 has a 41% chance with a tubal reversal. That still beats an IVF cycle. But if you’re under 30, the chances are 82%.
4 - It has been X years since my tubal ligation. Does that matter? Here’s an example. Suppose two women had their tubes tied 11 years ago. One was 21 when it was done and is now 32. The other was 32 then and is now 43. The one who is now 32 will definitely have a better chance of getting pregnant after the surgery than the 43 year old. See the last question.
5 - How long does the surgery take? It will depend upon the surgeon’s skill, experience, training, how many he has done and the way he does the surgery. You could have a doctor that has done this maybe three times in the last four years or you could get a doctor that does it four times a day, five days a week like Dr. Berger. The first can take several hours due to lack of experience. The longer you are under anesthesia, the more potential problems and harder recovery you will have. Or with Dr. Berger, the surgery will be done in about an hour. You will be back home or in your hotel room just a couple hours later.
6 - Does my doctor do only tubal reversal? This is a question you should ask if you aren’t. Why? Because if he does IVF as well, you only need to look above at 1 and 2 to understand what he wants to do regardless of your situation. And if he does other types of surgeries as well, how experienced and practiced is he? When you have the choice of the Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center where tubal reversals are all that is done, just think of all the experience they have.
There are more questions but this article is long enough. Get the answers to these questions for yourself. Then you can decide if IVF or tubal reversal is best for you. You can also decide which surgeon will be best to go with as well.
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