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Pregnancy

Missed period after tubal ligation

01/08/2009

Question:

I had my second and last child two years ago, by c-section. In that time, my doctor tied my tuba, (tubal ligation). Although I had some irregular periods towards the beginning of it all, they evened out and have become mostly regular, and timely.

Now I`ve missed a period. I know the odds are very slim, and since I`m two weeks late and have taken two tests that both say negative, I know I`m probably over-worried. Yet, the lingering fear of a possible tubal pregnancy still bothers me. (My mother had two of them, before she had me.) I`m not sure if I have any reason to actually worry or wonder.. I don`t know if my head is just creating all this in my body, or if I really possibly could be pregnant either normally or in a tubal sense. Whatever it is, I`m at a loss for what to do or when to go to see an actual doctor. (Considering I don`t have a family doctor or insurance.) Any suggestions? The main suggestion from my mother is if it comes to the second missed period, then I should see.. But what if that`s waiting too long?

Answer:

Tubal ligation is not 100% effective in preventing pregnancy.  A tubal ligation at the time of C-Section is the most effective method but still has a 1-3% risk of failure.

However, since your pregnancy test is negative the chance of an ectopic is zero.  If you were pregnant, the chance of an ectopic is roughly 50%.

For more information:

Go to the Pregnancy health topic, where you can:

Response by:

Arthur T Ollendorff, MD Arthur T Ollendorff, MD
Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology
College of Medicine
University of Cincinnati