6 Reasons You Might Need a Hysteroscopy

One of the biggest advances in modern medicine is our ability to visualize the inside of your body without opening it up. X-rays, ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), CT scans — these technologies give us a glimpse inside your body without surgery.

As women’s health specialists, we’re adding the hysteroscope to this list of advanced diagnostic and treatment tools. Here at Capital Women’s Care, our team routinely turns to hysteroscopy to diagnose and treat a wide range of reproductive health issues in women, some of which we explore here.

Hysteroscopy 101

When we perform a hysteroscopy, we insert a long, thin camera through your vagina to take a look at your cervix and uterus. The lighted camera sends high-definition, 3D images to a screen that we can view in real time.

The many applications of hysteroscopy

From our standpoint, the hysteroscopy is an excellent go-to tool for a number of objectives, such as:

1. Getting to the bottom of abnormal bleeding

One of the most common issues among women is abnormal bleeding, which affects up to one-third of women at some point in their lives. Whether your periods are heavy or you have spotting between periods, we can use hysteroscopy to look for issues inside your uterus that might be contributing to the problem.

2. Finding fibroids

The hysteroscopy procedure is a great way for us to determine whether you have uterine fibroids, a condition that affects up to 80% of women by the age of 50. Uterine fibroids are mostly benign and most don’t cause symptoms, but some can pose issues with abnormal bleeding, pregnancy, and comfort.

3. Collecting a biopsy

If your Pap tests keep coming back with abnormal results, we may turn to a hysteroscopy to take a tissue sample from your cervix for more extensive testing.

4. Removing an IUD

Sometimes we use a hysteroscopy to help guide us in removing an intrauterine device.

5. Figuring out fertility issues

About 11% of women of reproductive age experience fertility issues, and a hysteroscopy is often our first diagnostic stop. With this procedure, we can check your uterus with the hysteroscope to see if there are any issues that might be interfering with your ability to get pregnant or to stay pregnant.

6. Removing troublesome growths

While a hysteroscopy is an excellent diagnostic tool, we can also use this advanced technique to perform minor surgeries, such as removing the uterine fibroids. When we use it operatively, we insert specialized tools alongside the camera and then perform the procedure using the monitor to guide us.

This minimally invasive approach through the vagina is a great way to reduce postoperative risks and speed up recovery time.

As you can see, a hysteroscopy can play an important role in your health — both diagnostically and as a treatment tool.

If you have more questions about hysteroscopy, please don’t hesitate to contact one of our three conveniently located offices in Frederick and Mount Airy, Maryland.