Infertility can be one of the most stressful experiences. Answers about why are essential.
An ultrasound is one of the first and most important steps in the investigation of subfertility or infertility. Performed at the appropriate time of the cycle it can check for abnormalities of the uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes as well as comment on the function of the ovaries and endometrium. One of the most common causes of infertility is endometriosis. A standard pelvic ultrasound would not even look for endometriosis besides an obvious ovarian endometrioma. A systematic approach to looking for endometriosis in the areas outside of the uterus and ovaries, which is the approach taken at SUGO. This approach is key because fertility issues can arise from any part of the gynecologic or pelvic organs and all deserve thorough investigation.
Your gynecologist or fertility doctor will usually want you to know about the function of the Fallopian tubes – this requires a test that watches fluid attempt to travel through the tubes. While the name of this may be different from one doctor or clinic to another, here at SUGO, we are simplifying things by calling it Tubal Patency Ultrasound. Other names may be Hysterosalpingography, Sonosalpingography, Hysterosalpingo-Contrast-Sonography (HyCoSy), or Hysterosalpingo-Foam-Sonography (HyFoSy). The bottom line is ultrasound is the first line non-invasive ultrasound-based technique which can determine tubal patency and the name matters less than what the ultrasound actually tests!
