Detailed general information can be found here on our website. Please remember that online medical information is no substitute for expert medical care from your own healthcare team. Explaining Ectopic Pregnancy: Physical Recovery. Learn more about other symptoms during recovery from an ectopic pregnancy. Professionals Leaflets Guidance Reports Collaborations. In a normal pregnancy, the fertilized egg grows inside the uterus.
In most ectopic pregnancies, the egg grows in a fallopian tube. This is also called a tubal pregnancy. Sometimes the egg grows in an ovary or another place in the belly. But this is rare. An ectopic pregnancy never becomes a normal pregnancy and birth. You had treatment to end your ectopic pregnancy.
This was done to prevent dangerous problems. You may need a few weeks to recover if you had surgery. You should be able to have a normal pregnancy in the future. But you may have a higher risk for more ectopic pregnancies. Tell your doctor right away if you get pregnant again. Follow-up care is a key part of your treatment and safety.
Be sure to make and go to all appointments, and call your doctor or nurse call line if you are having problems. It's also a good idea to know your test results and keep a list of the medicines you take. Call anytime you think you may need emergency care. For example, call if:. It is likely you have been advised to wait for three months if you have had methotrexate, or for two full menstrual cycles periods after surgery, before trying to conceive.
The bleed that occurs in the first week or so of treatment for an ectopic pregnancy is not your first period. It is the bleed that occurs in response to falling hormones associated with the lost pregnancy. The time it takes to conceive and chances of conceiving depends on many factors such as the health of your Fallopian tube s , age, your general and reproductive health and how often you have sex.
Detailed general information can be found here on our website. Please remember that online medical information is no substitute for expert medical care from your own healthcare team. Below is a list of common questions that we are asked about trying to conceive. This page covers questions on timing, ovulation, lifestyle, testing, assisted conception, and pregnancy tests. While there is no clear, researched evidence on how long a couple should wait to try to conceive after having treatment for ectopic pregnancy, we and other medical professionals advise that it may be best to wait for at least three months or two full menstrual cycles periods before trying to conceive for both physical and emotional reasons.
Physically, this timeframe is to allow your cycle to return to normal and for there to be a clear period to date a new pregnancy from. The date of the first day of the period is what is used to decide when to scan a new pregnancy; information that is invaluable in ensuring you are not suffering from another ectopic pregnancy.
The first proper period you have after an ectopic pregnancy may be heavier than usual and the second more like your usual period. A normal period would suggest you are hormonally ready to be able to try to conceive. Having two periods can also give an idea of menstrual cycle length, which may be different for a few months after your ectopic before settling back into its usual rhythm. This wait allows the internal inflammation and bruising from the ectopic and any associated treatment to heal.
In addition to the physical aspects of ectopic pregnancy, many people also feel an intense emotional impact. Taking time before trying to conceive again enables the necessary process of grief to surface and be worked through.
The emotional recovery that is often needed can be significant and many underestimate this aspect. This is because the drug may have reduced the level of folate in your body which is needed to ensure a baby develops healthily. The Methotrexate is metabolised quickly but it can affect the quality of your cells, including those of your eggs, and the quality of your blood for up to three months after it has been given.
The medicine can also affect the way your liver works and so you need to give your body time to recover properly before a new pregnancy is considered.
A shortage of folate could result in a greater chance of a baby having a neural tube defect such as cleft lip and palate, or even spina bifida or other neural tube defects. If you have had medical management followed by surgery, you can start taking a folic acid supplement again once your doctors have confirmed that all of the pregnancy has resolved. This is particularly important if you have been having blood tests to check hCG levels after your surgery.
You can start to try to conceive again 12 weeks after the date that the methotrexate was administered. The NHS website has more information on vitamins, supplements, and nutrition during pregnancy. Before your first period arrives, you will ovulate. The period when it returns will indicate that you are ovulating again. It is possible to ovulate 14 days after surgical treatment and during methotrexate treatment, so it is important to be aware that it is possible to become pregnant without having a period first, if you are not using some form of contraception.
When a person has only one Fallopian tube, they are still able to get pregnant from an egg released by the opposite ovary as an egg from one ovary can travel down the Fallopian tube on the other side.
A pproximately one-third of pregnancies are a result of pick-up of the egg from the ovary on the opposite side to the remaining Fallopian tube. An ovulation predictor kit measures Luteinising Hormone LH. A surge in LH leads to ovulation within the next 12 hours. The egg does not always get released from the ovary in spite of a surge but it is a very good marker. A positive pregnancy test around 14 days after you think ovulation occurred is the only way of establishing that it actually did.
Urinary ovulation predictor kits are used typically daily around the time ovulation may be expected. A conversion from a negative to a positive reading would suggest that ovulation is about to occur within 24—48 hours, giving two days to engage in sexual intercourse or artificial insemination with the intention of conceiving.
As sperm can stay viable in the female reproductive system for several days, LH tests are not recommended for contraception, as the LH surge typically occurs after the beginning of the fertile window.
We naturally assume that we will ovulate from alternative ovaries each month left ovary, right ovary, left, right etc. This is not true and varies. Some will ovulate from the same side each month with an occasional ovulation from the other side, while others will ovulate randomly from side to side. It depends on which ovary contains the egg that is at the right stage of development at the point in time at the time of ovulation and is nothing to do with a set pattern.
The side we ovulate from does not strictly matter as an egg from one ovary can travel down the Fallopian tube on the other side. The menstrual cycle lasts about 28 days for most and ovulation usually happens 10 to 16 days before the start of your next period. Physical signs of ovulation include an increase in vaginal discharge. This changes from white, creamy or non-existent to clear, stretchy and slippery like egg-white consistency when you ovulate.
The Fallopian tubes are not attached to the ovaries and, at the point of ovulation, some very delicate structures called the fimbriae on the end of the Fallopian tube begin to move gently drawing the egg toward the end of the Fallopian tube like lots of little fingers waving and drawing the egg towards it.
The DNA that makes up the strands for hCG, which is the hormone associated with pregnancy, is only one strand different to the luteinising hormone LH which detects ovulation.
Both hormones, at a molecular level, are nearly identical. You will not remember anything that occurs during the surgery after this point. Next, a breathing tube called an endotracheal tube will be inserted into your windpipe. This tube is connected to a ventilator that takes control of your breathing during the operation. Ectopic pregnancy surgery takes around 45 to 90 minutes to complete and generally proceeds in the following fashion:. In the recovery room, you will slowly wake up from anesthesia.
A nurse will monitor your vital signs and help you manage common post-operative symptoms like pain and nausea. Once you are fully awake and alert, you will be discharged home if you underwent a laparoscopy or wheeled to a hospital room if you underwent a laparotomy.
Patients can generally resume normal activities within a week after undergoing laparoscopic ectopic pregnancy surgery. A laparotomy, on the other hand, requires a two to six-week recovery period. As you recover, you can expect the following:. Ask your surgeon when you can shower after your surgery.
When able to do so, be sure to gently wash your incision site s and pat them dry with a clean towel afterward. Do not apply any powders or lotions to or near your incision site s. You will have specific activity guidelines to follow after surgery, such as:. Expect to see your surgeon around one week after surgery. At this appointment, your surgeon will check your incision site s , remove any non-absorbable stitches, and monitor for complications.
If you underwent a salpingostomy, your doctor will measure your hCG level every week to confirm that it declines to zero. This ensures that there is no pregnancy tissue remaining in the fallopian tube. If you underwent a salpingectomy and the lap report confirms a tubal pregnancy, you probably will not need a follow-up blood hCG measurement. If you are interested in having children in the future, talk with your doctor about when it is deemed safe for you to try to conceive again.
As of now, there is no data to support waiting a specific time interval before conceiving after ectopic pregnancy surgery. If you get pregnant again, tell your OB-GYN and be on the lookout for signs and symptoms of an ectopic pregnancy. Since women who have had an ectopic pregnancy are at an increased risk for having another one, your doctor may want to see you sooner than usual to confirm that your pregnancy is growing in your uterus.
Lastly, as for any patient, be certain to see your OB-GYN for your regular well-woman check-ups and preventive care. This may be treated with another surgery or by taking a dose of methotrexate.
It's normal to experience a rollercoaster of emotions after an ectopic pregnancy. While joining an online or in-person support group can bring you comfort and emotional guidance, be sure to reach out to your doctor if you find it hard to get back to your daily routine after healing from surgery.
You may benefit from talking with a therapist or counselor trained in pregnancy loss. Undergoing ectopic pregnancy surgery can feel like a whirlwind experience from start to finish. Please take the time you need to rest and care for yourself, both body and mind, after your procedure. Lastly, if you are worried about your future fertility, try to remain positive—in most cases, the chances of having a successful pregnancy after an ectopic one are high.
Get diet and wellness tips to help your kids stay healthy and happy. Incidence, diagnosis and management of tubal and nntubal ectopic pregnancies: a review. Fertil Res Pract. Tulandi T. Ectopic pregnancy: Surgical treatment. Falcone T, ed.
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