Diagnostic Laparoscopy
Some conditions do not appear on any scan. Endometriosis and pelvic adhesions in particular are frequently invisible on ultrasound and diagnosed only by looking. A diagnostic laparoscopy examines the pelvis directly through incisions of about a centimetre.
- Sees what scans cannot
- Incisions of about a centimetre
- Treatment often possible in the same sitting
- Usually home the same day
Stay
Day care or one night
Duration
30 to 45 minutes
Anaesthesia
General
About Diagnostic Laparoscopy
A camera is passed through a small incision at the navel and the pelvis inspected: uterus, tubes, ovaries and the lining of the pelvis. Endometriosis deposits and adhesions are visible here and often nowhere else. Where something treatable is found, it is frequently dealt with during the same procedure rather than at a second operation.
- Endometriosis is often invisible on ultrasound
- Treatment is usually done at the same sitting if found
- Tubal patency can be tested during the procedure
- Shoulder tip pain afterwards comes from the gas and is harmless
Before you read on
Everything here is general information about diagnostic laparoscopy. Whether it suits you, and how it would be done in your case, is a decision for your doctor after examining you.
Your consultant's instructions always take precedence over anything written on this page.
When is it recommended?
Situations in which a doctor may suggest diagnostic laparoscopy.
- Chronic pelvic pain with normal scans
- Suspected endometriosis
- Infertility investigation
- Suspected pelvic adhesions after previous surgery or infection
- Persistent pain despite medical treatment
- Assessment before fertility treatment
Procedure details
The usual sequence, from first consultation through to follow-up.
Preparation
Fasting from midnight, with blood tests and consent covering both diagnosis and any treatment that may be needed.
The procedure
Under general anaesthesia, a small incision at the navel, the abdomen gently inflated with gas, and a camera inserted.
Inspection and treatment
The pelvis is examined systematically. Endometriosis or adhesions found are usually treated during the same procedure.
Recovery
Most women go home the same day, with small dressings, some abdominal soreness and shoulder tip discomfort.
How to prepare
What to sort out before you come in.
- Fasting from midnight, or as instructed
- Consent usually covers treatment as well as diagnosis, so discuss what you agree to beforehand
- Tell the team about previous abdominal surgery, which changes the approach
- Arrange somebody to take you home and stay the first night
- Bring previous scan and surgical reports
Recovery
What to expect afterwards, and roughly when.
- Shoulder tip pain from the gas is common for a day or two and settles
- Abdominal soreness around the small incisions for a few days
- Most women return to desk work within a week
- Light bleeding is common if the uterus was manipulated during the procedure
- Findings are explained before discharge, with follow-up for any treatment plan
Why choose Humayun for diagnostic laparoscopy
The point of looking is to treat what is found, so the operation should be set up to do both.
- Consent and preparation covering treatment as well as diagnosis, so one procedure does the work of two
- Endometriosis treated at the time it is found rather than at a second operation
- Tubal patency assessed in the same sitting where fertility is the question
- Findings explained with images before discharge rather than in a letter
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