Brown Spotting Before Period: Causes, Clomid & Fertility Concerns

Question
Hello, I'm 30 years old and TTC. For the last months I've been spotting brown for about 3 days beginning my period. My doctor told me I had a hormone imbalance and prescribed Clomid 100 mg (4 months). I took the clomid but the spotting continued. I had an HSG which came out normal. My doctor doesn't really know what is causing this so he wants to do a Laparoscopy. My question is, Is this type of spotting normal? What could be causing this? And could this spotting be affecting my fertility? My last period began 15 Sept. 2005. I appreciate your help!

Answer
It is very common to have some spotting a few days prior to starting a normal menstrual blood flow. The brownish staiining may merely be "old blood" being forced out of the uterus. Clomid will only increase the probability of ovulation by acting on your hypothalamus to shut down the negative feedback mechanism. Thus more FSH is produced by your pituitary gland, and more follicles mature, increasinig the probability of ovulatin at mid-cycle. Clomid does not control spotting. If you are ovulating, and the HSG was normal, just continue TTC by concentrating intercourse on cycle day #13,14,15, or 16 each month. Don't worry about the "pre-spotting" before your actual period.