Introduction to Tubal Ligation

For those of you who are finished having children, tubal ligation and vasectomy can be an attractive, cost-effective option that minimally impacts on your health. Tubal ligation is not a guarantee of contraception, and there is also no guarantee that the procedure will be reversible, although from both points of view it is an extremely predictable and highly reversible procedure. You should ask your gynaecologist about how your particular surgery will be done - here we are looking at the standard methods and side effects of tubal ligation that you might encounter.

How it works
The principle upon which tubal ligation is based is that of preventing the egg from reaching the sperm. It is a barrier method -- although a much more permanent one than other barrier methods like condoms, diaphragms or inter-uterine devices. Rather than hormonal contraception methods, which usually prevent an egg being released, when you have a tubal ligation done the tubes are either burned, cut or otherwise closed so that the egg is still released, but it cannot meet the sperm. The egg is broken down and reabsorbed by the body.

How is tubal ligation done?
Your Fallopian tubes may be cut, burned, tied up with rubber bands, or clipped to ligate them. Alternatively, you may have tiny, flexible devices placed inside your Fallopian tubes which the body recognizes as foreign, and so forms scar tissue around them. This effectively blocks the tubes in a more natural way, but takes longer to effect.

The procedure
The procedure will differ from surgeon to surgeon, and patient to patient. You should ask your own gynecologist questions about how tubal ligation will be done in your case. However, a common scenario involves:

* You will be anesthetized
* One to three small incisions being made around the navel
* A laparoscope is inserted in the incisions -- a tiny camera which allows surgeons to see the internal organs with cuts as small as possible.
* The tubes are ligated by one of the methods above.
* Your belly will be stitched up by either dissolvable or non-dissolvable stitches.


Is it reversible?
In many cases, yes. In some cases, no. If your tubes have been burned or cut to ligate them, you have a much lower chance of being able to become pregnant following reversal surgery. If there is a greater than even chance you'll want to become pregnant after a tubal ligation, it is recommended that you explore alternative contraception options with your doctor.