1. Determine if you are a candidate for tubal reversal surgery. There are two options for women who have had a previous tubal ligation and now desire to have more children: 1) tubal reversal surgery and, 2) in vitro fertilization (IVF). Although tubal reversal surgery is not right for everyone, in most cases it is the most successful and most cost-effective option for pregnancy after sterilization. With pregnancy rates averaging 75% and a cost of $5900, tubal reversal surgery is usually more desirable than IVF with pregnancy rates of approximately 27% and costs exceeding $10,000 per IVF cycle.
- One way to determine whether tubal reversal surgery is the best option for you is through an interpretation of the operative report from your tubal ligation. With this information, the doctor is able to provide feedback on the type of sterilization that was performed and the amount of tube that may be remaining after the reversal. Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center provides a Medical Records Release Form to assist you with obtaining your report. http://www.tubal-reversal.net/tubal_ligation_operative_report.htm
- If you cannot get a copy of your tubal ligation operative report, your tubal reversal surgeon can begin your surgery with diagnostic laparoscopy to examine your fallopian tubes and determine if tubal reversal is likely to be successful. If so, he will repair your tubes immediately. If your tubal ligation has severely damaged your tubes and repair is not possible, you will be given a partial refund. The "laparoscopy package" offered by Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center is excellent insurance in situations when the type of tubal ligation is unknown. Fortunately, the tubal reversal surgeons at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center are able to repair the tubes in 98% of cases.
- Request A Special Report - 7 Questions to help you decide if tubal reversal surgery is right for you. This can be requested on The Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center website at www.tubal-reversal.net
2. Do your research and choose a doctor.
- It is important to determine what credentials the doctor has that demonstrate expertise in tubal reversal surgery. You can check on line to see if the doctor is a Fellow of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and a member of the Society of Reproductive Surgeons. Doctors with both of these credentials are recognized by their peers as experts with the training and experience best suited for tubal reversal surgery.
- You will also want to know how many tubal reversal procedures the doctor has performed. The more experience the doctor has, the better! Dr. Gary Berger performs 4 tubal reversals everyday, 5 days a week with more than 7000 reversals performed.
- What are the doctor's operating times? In other words, how long does the surgery take? An operating time of one hour to one and one-half hours is a good sign. Minimizing operating time is important, since longer anesthesia and surgery times are associated with increased complication rates and recovery from surgery.
- Does the doctor operate in an outpatient facility or in a hospital? Personalized care is easier to ensure in a small private outpatient setting than in a large hospital. Outpatient centers typically have a higher clinical staff to patient ratio than in a hospital, and nurses can concentrate all of their attention on the safety and comfort of tubal reversal patients. The idea that it may be safer to have elective surgery in a hospital is inaccurate. According to the Centers for Disease Control, roughly 100,000 people wind up with a potentially deadly infection (MRSA) during hospital treatment in the US each year. Hospitals are the right place for treating complicated medical or surgical problems, but they are not the best place for healthy people to have tubal reversal surgery! Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center is the only medical facility dedicated exclusively to tubal reversal surgery.
- What is the expected recovery time following surgery? You should be able to return to work in a week to ten days. Recovery times of greater than two weeks could indicate that the doctor does not have much experience performing reversal surgery.
- You will want to determine who will address your questions or concerns following the reversal procedure. Is there a message board or e-mail availability for general questions? Will there be any charges for follow-up care?
- What are the doctor's success rates and how is this data obtained? Are statistics based on the patient's age and type of tubal ligation? The answer to this question should be based on accurate statistical data. Ask for information about the outcomes of surgery for women in your age group and with your method of tubal ligation. Ask to see the statistics that the doctor has regarding his patients' outcomes. At Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center, the staff keeps an extensive information database and can give you detailed statistics about pregnancy rates for patients who have had surgery with Dr. Berger.
3. Schedule a free phone consultation. You should be able to have your initial questions answered by phone without charge. The nurses at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center are available 7 days a week to take your calls and answer questions. The tubal reversal doctors respond by e-mail daily to questions from potential patients.
4. Schedule your tubal reversal surgery. Call the office or contact one of the nurses by phone or e-mail. Before calling, choose a few dates that would work best for your schedule. When you speak to a nurse, she will let you know which dates are available. Dr. Berger and Dr. Monteith operate five days a week, Monday - Friday.
5. Read through the Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center website. Dr. Berger and his staff have prepared a great deal of information on what patients can expect and what to bring for surgery. A surgery checklist is offered online at http://www.tubal-reversal.net/tubal-reversal-surgery-checklist.htm and information on what to expect can be downloaded at http://www.tubal-reversal.net/surgery-before.htm . The mission of Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center is to provide patients with accurate, detailed information so that their tubal reversal journey is a positive experience from start to finish.
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Informative guide
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Tubal reversal surgeons at Chapel Hill Tubal Reversal Center are able to repair the tubes in 98% of cases