The surgical birth control option known as tubal ligation or tubal sterilization or “having your tubes tied” is commonly referred to as “permanent birth control.” When medical history and overall health allow, a fertility specialist can reverse a tubal ligation, restoring a woman’s ability to conceive and carry a pregnancy to term. Circumstances can change drastically over time, and tubal reversal offers a chance to have a family when the option of having a child may once have seemed impossible.
Tubal ligation may have been done after childbirth or in combination with some other abdominal surgery. The process may mean cutting or blocking the fallopian tubes and to prevent egg fertilization in the uterus. Reversal of tubal ligation is possible via a surgical procedure done either inpatient or outpatient basis depending on the surgical method chosen.
Using a small incision through the abdomen, the doctor may unblock or reattach the fallopian tubes. According to statistics from The Mayo Clinic, success rates range from 80 percent to 40 percent, depending on the patient.
What Factors Impact Tubal Reversal Success?
Every case is different and a full consultation with your fertility and IVF specialist will provide more information about individual tubal restoration options. Health factors affecting a woman’s ability to conceive after a tubal reversal include:
- Type of tubal ligation done
- Extent of damage to fallopian tubes
- Age
- Body mass index (BMI)
- Length of remaining fallopian tubes
- General fertility factors (egg quality, sperm condition, etc.)
Before deciding on tubal reversal surgery, your fertility specialist will explain the details of the procedure, such as risks of any surgery (infection, bleeding, complications related to anesthesia) and specific fertility risks such as possible tubal (ectopic) pregnancy after the reversal. Patients will learn their likely ability to become pregnant after tubal ligation reversal or, if surgical reversal is not recommended, how other options like vitro fertilization may have potential.
No matter why you decide to consider reversing a tubal ligation, fertility and IVF specialist Dr. Victor Beshay and the team at DFW Fertility offer the most comprehensive range of treatment options in North Texas. Contact DFW Center for Fertility and IVF to learn whether tubal ligation reversal is right for you. To schedule an appointment, contact us online or call 469-854-0305.
