QuestionI am nearly 29 and have no children.
When i was 24 i had a laparoscopy and was diagnosed with PCOS, at the time he informed me that he had put a series of little "holes" in my ovaries to try and releive the pressure on the cists?
At 25 i fell pregnant but miscarried at 8 weeks, a year later i had another laparoscopy and was told that i had a double uterus (but not cervix), one side of which had not formed properly, it almost just looks like a lump in the right tube. Because of this i was informed that i could fall pregnant but would have a high risk of miscarriage between 16-20 weeks.
I have recently had a smeer test and been told by the doctor that i also have a tilted womb.
I would like children but am worried that with the long list of complications above, is it really possible to have all of these conditions at the same time?
AnswerHello Natalie,
In answer to your question, one can certainly have all these problems at the same time, but to lessen your worries, you can disregard the "tilted" uterus problem. That is a normal variant that women can have and has no bearing on their reproductive health or abilities.
The ovarian and uterine problems are separate and separate issues. The PCOD is an ovarian dysfunction, whereby the ovary does not process the precursor hormones correctly and therefore does not ovulate. That leads to irregular or no menses, and fertility problems. It is solved by either birth control pills, if you are not wanting pregnancy, or fertility drugs to induce ovulation, if you are trying for pregnancy. We have many good medications to treat this so pregnancy is not out of the question. It will just be more difficult.
In terms of the uterine abnormality, you certainly can get pregnant spontaneously with this problem, although you are at increased risk of a miscarriage. That risk is NOT a guarantee, however, so I would not worry about it too much. You have a higher chance of successful pregnancy than of miscarriage. If after several miscarriages, you are not successful, you have the option of using a surrogate to carry the pregnancy. So, there are options.
I hope this helps,
Edward J. Ramirez, M.D., FACOG
Executive Medical Director
The Fertility and Gynecology Center
Monterey Bay IVF Program
www.montereybayivf.com
9833 Blue Larkspur Lane
Monterey, California, U.S.A.
93940
