Hi, yesterday I had surgery to stop my ectopic pregnancy and one tube was removed. I have been told the other tube looks healthy but this was my first pregnancy and I am terrified in case it happens again or I cant conceive. My partner and I were so excited to be parents and I feel like it has been snatched away so suddenly and so cruelly. Is there anyone who has had healthy pregnancies after having a tube removed? I also feel so guilty as the doctors detected a heart beat on my scan just before surgery and I keep thinking is this my fault.
Hi. I just had a surgery for ectopic pregnacy last week. It was my first pregnancy. My baby was 6 weeks old. I also keep thinking that I may have done something wrong but the doctor says there isn’t anything I could have done. From what I’ve read women do manage to get pregnant again later. I don’t know what will happen for me but I wish you good luck.
Hi Deeya
I am currently pregnant after an ectopic pregnancy which they removed my right tube. I got pregnant without any issues and baby made it to the right place x
Dear lawfulbecky,
I am so sorry to hear of your ectopic pregnancy and loss.
When we experience ectopic pregnancy we are suddenly faced with a life threatening emergency and it’s treatment, reduction in fertility, concerns about the future and the loss of our babies. Experiencing any one of these is an ordeal, putting them together is immense and your feelings are completely normal.
Generally, when a person has only one fallopian tube and both ovaries, they are still able to get pregnant from an egg at the opposite ovary as an egg from one ovary can travel down the tube on the other side. The fallopian tubes are not attached to the ovaries and, at the point of ovulation, some very delicate structures called the fimbriae begin to move gently creating a slight vacuum to suck the egg toward the end of the tube it is nearest to (like lots of little fingers waving and drawing the egg towards it). So, if you have only one tube then there is only one set of receptors working and one set of fimbriae creating a vacuum and so the egg is much more likely to find its way to that tube, whichever ovary it is produced from. Conservative estimates suggest that an egg produced on the tubeless side manages to descend the remaining tube around 15 to 20% of the time.
The chances of a further ectopic after a first in UK is 10%. So that’s 90% chance of the embryo being in right place next time.
While generally it is possible to conceive after an ectopic pregnancy, the amount of time it takes varies from couple to couple. Factors include age, general health, reproductive health and how often you have sex, among other things. It may be comforting to know that 65% of women are successfully pregnant within 18 months of experiencing an ectopic pregnancy and some studies suggest this rises to around 85% after two years.
Importantly early scans avail. As soon as you know you are pregnant, contact your local EPU to inform them and book in for an early scan at around six weeks. Remind them of your previous ectopic pregnancy. This self refer route is the best route in our view. Hopefully you will have some comfort to know you are under the radar of medical professionals right away.
I know that when I had my ectopic pregnancy I also looked for a reason and almost automatically we tend to blame ourselves. From the bottom of my heart, there is nothing you could have done to prevent the ectopic pregnancy from happening. I cannot emphasise enough - you are not to blame. Please be kind to yourself and I send you gentle hugs.
Karen x
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